Still wary of GM foods
29/04/2010
Source: Helsinki Times
Tight EU rules and a broadly sceptical European public are making it difficult to cultivate genetically modified crops. But controlling the entire food chain is not easy.
IN FINLAND, as in elsewhere in Europe, there is still strong resistance to genetically modified (GM) crops. There are fears that the “unnatural” properties of modified species will spread and cause dangerous diseases.
One good example is the Amflora potato, which contains exceptionally high levels of starch. This means that it can be used to manufacture paper. This slimy potato is not intended for consumption.
At the beginning of March the EU gave permission for Amflora to be cultivated, and trial cultivation of the species will be carried out in Finland among other countries. Researchers consider the crop to be completely harmless to nature, but critics of genetically modified warn against the starchy potato’s gene, which for example, acts against antibiotics. They argue that the spread of the gene could render antibiotic treatment less effective.
The experts deny that the Amflora, which has been thoroughly investigated, presents any danger whatsoever.
Organic meat, GM feed
Genetically modified foods are not allowed to be sold in Finland, but it remains difficult for the critical consumer to completely avoid groceries that utilise GM technology in some shape or form.
“Genetically modified vegetables are used to produce medicines, and these medicines may also be used in organic production,” says Markku Keinänen, a researcher at the University of Eastern Finland and a member of the Advisory Board on Biotechnology.
He adds that an increasing amount of feed intended for pigs and poultry, in Finland as well as in other countries, is made from genetically modified soya.
“You can’t examine meat to see whether the animal has eaten genetically modified feed.”
China invests heavily in GM
Genetically modified vegetables are mostly cultivated in the US, Latin America and India. GM cultivation is also spreading in China. The country spends around 100 million euros each year on developing genetically modified rice crops and other goods.
Groceries containing genetically modified Chinese rice have been found sporadically in Finnish shops. Last autumn, breads containing genetically modified linseed were withdrawn from sale.
The products present no danger to health but they had not been granted permission for sale in Europe. According to Keinänen, the EU’s permit rules are so strict that companies seldom even try to import genetically modified products into Europe.
Parliament considers new law
In Finland, law on cultivation of genetically modified vegetables is currently before parliament. The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Sirkka-Liisa Anttila (Centre) has assured that the new law will not open the doors to GM cultivation, but nor will it ban it outright.
In many countries the issue is so sensitive that a common EU policy is scarcely feasible, which means that in future it will continue to be decided at the national level. Italy and Austria have already declared that they do not intend to permit cultivation of genetically modified vegetables. However, both countries will continue to import genetically modified feed.
At the moment, around ten per cent of the world’s cultivated land is taken up by genetically modified crops. If growth continues at the present rate, the proportion will double within just a few years. As Keinänen points out, developments can be astonishingly rapid.
“In the United States, the cultivation of genetically modified sugar beets began in 2008. In the first year its proportion jumped to 59 per cent, and this year it is already nearing one hundred.”
Tight EU rules and a broadly sceptical European public are making it difficult to cultivate genetically modified crops. But controlling the entire food chain is not easy.
IN FINLAND, as in elsewhere in Europe, there is still strong resistance to genetically modified (GM) crops. There are fears that the “unnatural” properties of modified species will spread and cause dangerous diseases.
One good example is the Amflora potato, which contains exceptionally high levels of starch. This means that it can be used to manufacture paper. This slimy potato is not intended for consumption.
At the beginning of March the EU gave permission for Amflora to be cultivated, and trial cultivation of the species will be carried out in Finland among other countries. Researchers consider the crop to be completely harmless to nature, but critics of genetically modified warn against the starchy potato’s gene, which for example, acts against antibiotics. They argue that the spread of the gene could render antibiotic treatment less effective.
The experts deny that the Amflora, which has been thoroughly investigated, presents any danger whatsoever.
Organic meat, GM feed
Genetically modified foods are not allowed to be sold in Finland, but it remains difficult for the critical consumer to completely avoid groceries that utilise GM technology in some shape or form.
“Genetically modified vegetables are used to produce medicines, and these medicines may also be used in organic production,” says Markku Keinänen, a researcher at the University of Eastern Finland and a member of the Advisory Board on Biotechnology.
He adds that an increasing amount of feed intended for pigs and poultry, in Finland as well as in other countries, is made from genetically modified soya.
“You can’t examine meat to see whether the animal has eaten genetically modified feed.”
China invests heavily in GM
Genetically modified vegetables are mostly cultivated in the US, Latin America and India. GM cultivation is also spreading in China. The country spends around 100 million euros each year on developing genetically modified rice crops and other goods.
Groceries containing genetically modified Chinese rice have been found sporadically in Finnish shops. Last autumn, breads containing genetically modified linseed were withdrawn from sale.
The products present no danger to health but they had not been granted permission for sale in Europe. According to Keinänen, the EU’s permit rules are so strict that companies seldom even try to import genetically modified products into Europe.
Parliament considers new law
In Finland, law on cultivation of genetically modified vegetables is currently before parliament. The Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Sirkka-Liisa Anttila (Centre) has assured that the new law will not open the doors to GM cultivation, but nor will it ban it outright.
In many countries the issue is so sensitive that a common EU policy is scarcely feasible, which means that in future it will continue to be decided at the national level. Italy and Austria have already declared that they do not intend to permit cultivation of genetically modified vegetables. However, both countries will continue to import genetically modified feed.
At the moment, around ten per cent of the world’s cultivated land is taken up by genetically modified crops. If growth continues at the present rate, the proportion will double within just a few years. As Keinänen points out, developments can be astonishingly rapid.
“In the United States, the cultivation of genetically modified sugar beets began in 2008. In the first year its proportion jumped to 59 per cent, and this year it is already nearing one hundred.”
