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THIRD WORLD NETWORK BIOSAFETY INFORMATION SERVICE 18 April 2005
RE: GE RICE "PLANTED AND SOLD ILLEGALLY" IN CHINA We wish to bring to your attention the discovery of GE rice, unapproved for human consumption, in the Hubei province in China by Greenpeace. The Chinese government has not authorised GE rice for commercial planting, and has to date permitted only field testing. But it appears that the GE rice has entered the food chain in China for the last two years. Based on a tip-off, a Greenpeace team was despatched to investigate and found the presense of GE rice in the samples of rice seed and unmilled and milled rice taken from seed companies, agriculture extension stations, farmers, rice millers, wholesalers and retailers. Among the samples were two that tested positive for Bt rice. For years, large-scale field trials with Bt rice have been conducted by scientists of the Huazhong Agriculture University in Wuhan, the provincial capital of Hubei. Bt rice has not been approved for cultivation anywhere in the world. According to Greenpeace, this GE Bt rice could potentially cause allergenic reactions in humans. Citing studies, it says that the protein produced in the Bt rice (called Cry1Ac) may have induced allergenic-type responses in mice. Following this latest discovery by Greepeace the Chinese government is said to have ordered an investigation into the environmental group's claims. The illegal release of GE rice into the food chain prior to approval underscores the weakness of the regulatory system. Such incidences are not new. As recently as March this year, multinational GE company Syngenta admitted that they mistakenly sold hundreds of tonnes of illegal unapproved GE maize in the US over the past four years. Another GE contamination case in the US in 2001 resulted in a $1 billion product recall amid concerns of potential allergenic reactions after illegal, GE maize (Starlink) entered the human food chain. And in Mexico in 2002, a centre of biodiversity for maize, testing of 22 varieties revealed genetic contamination in 15 of them, despite a government ban on GE maize planting.
REF: Doc.TWN/Biosafety/2005/B Item 1 GREENPEACE PRESS RELEASE WUHAn, Hubei Province, China - In a startling development that may have repurcussions on exports of China's biggest crop, Greenpeace has uncovered genetically engineered (GE) rice, unapproved for human consumption, that appears to have been planted and sold illegally in China for the last two years. The Chinese government has not authorised GE Rice for commercial planting, and has to date permitted only field testing. Nevertheless, it appears GE Rice is being sold, planted, consumed, and possibly exported in China, one of the largest exporters of Rice. Many of the markets to which China sends its rice demand GE-free grain, and the contamination could negatively impact China's rice sales, particularly in Japan, Korea, Russia, and the European Union. No country in the world has commercially released GE rice. In the US, despite widespread plantings of GE maize (corn) and soy, no commercial GE rice crops have been planted for fear of consumer and market rejection. Whistle blowers: local farmers Local farmers tipped off our investigators that GE rice was being sold without government approval several months ago, when Greenpeace conducted its 'Rice is Life' tour there. Subsequent investigations by our team found samples of rice seed and unmilled and milled rice containing GE strains. We collected evidence from seed companies, agriculture extension stations, farmers, rice millers, wholesalers and retailers. We tested our results with the international laboratory GeneScan, which confirmed the presence of transgenic DNA in 19 samples. Two of the samples tested positive as Bt rice - a form which has been genetically engineered to produce an inbuilt pesticide. For years, large-scale field trials with Bt rice have been conducted by scientists of the Huazhong Agriculture University in Wuhan, the provincial capital of Hubei. The area borders dangerously close to what's called the "centre for biodiversity" of rice -- the place where the natural evolution of wild and cultivated rice is at its most active, producing the greatest number of varieties and variations from generation to generation. Any contamination of the wild rice species there could alter natural rice evolution irrevocably and with impacts that may not be understood for generations to come. Why is this dangerous? GE insect resistant Bt rice has not been approved for cultivation anywhere in the world. There is no publicly available environmental assessment nor human food safety assessment available for any GE Bt rice. However, studies from other GE Bt crops such as maize and cotton give strong indications that Bt rice will have serious environmental consequences and there are serious human food safety concerns. Food safety risks:
Environmental risks:
Rice is life The illegal GE rice scandal comes at a time when the Chinese government is evaluating the environmental and health safety of various GE rice lines for potential commercial approval. The illegal release of GE rice into the food chain prior to approval underscores the weakness of the regulatory system. Those weaknesses are not limited to China. In March multinational GE conglomerate Syngenta admitted that they mistakenly sold hundreds of tonnes of illegal unapproved GE maize in the United States over the past four years. Regulators hadn't noticed. Another GE contamination case in the USA in 2001 resulted in a $1 billion product recall amid concerns of potential allergenic reactions after illegal, GE corn (Starlink) entered the human food chain. And in Mexico in 2002, a centre of biodiversity for maize, testing of 22 varieties revealed genetic contamination in 15 of them, despite a government ban on GE planting. Greenpeace should not have to be monitoring the GE industry's compliance with regulations, and the GE industry is clearly incapable of regulating itself. GE rice is dangerous to the environment, our world's food supply, and China's market position as a rice exporter. Item 2 China Seeks Probe of Greenpeace
Rice Claim BEIJING (AP) - China has ordered an investigation into an environmental group's claims that genetically modified rice not approved for human consumption has been sold in central China for two years, an official said Thursday. Greenpeace on Wednesday called for a recall of the rice and released what it said were results of lab tests of rice from seed companies, farmers and rice millers in Hubei province. ``We have started an investigation of the Greenpeace report,'' said an official contacted by phone at the Agriculture Ministry's office for genetically modified organisms. The official confirmed that some genetically modified rice was planted in Hubei, but said it was experimental and the plantings were limited to five acres. He refused to give his name. The Chinese government is researching genetic engineering in a wide range of crops, hoping to increase farm output as it copes with a shortage of farmland and the need to feed a population of 1.3 billion people. China has seen little of the debate that has raged abroad about the possible dangers of genetically modified, or GM, crops. Greenpeace said up to 1,200 tons of the rice may have ``entered the food chain.'' It did not give any more details and it was not clear whether the rice had been shipped out of the country. It said interviews with seed providers and farmers showed that the rice had been in circulation for at least two years. The rice has been modified to produce a pesticide that can cause allergic reactions in humans, Dr. Janet Cotter, from the group's science division, said in a prepared statement. ``We are calling on the Chinese government to take urgent action to recall the unapproved (genetically engineered) rice from the fields and from the food chain, and to conduct an immediate inquiry into the source of the contamination,'' Greenpeace said in the statement. An official of the Hubei provincial agriculture bureau, contacted by phone, said the province has been carrying out test plantings of GM rice engineered to resist insects for two to three years. The official refused to give his name or any other details about the rice, saying the issue was a ``sensitive problem.'' Beijing said in December that it was testing the safety of genetically modified rice but denied that it was preparing to allow commercial sales. Item 3 Unlicensed GM rice may be in
UK food chain Unlicensed GM rice sold illegally
on the internet to Chinese farmers has The Chinese authorities are
investigating after 11 samples of rice in Hubei The UK is one of a number of
EU countries that imports rice from China. The GM rice was discovered
after Greenpeace China investigated offers on the Apart from a potential risk
to human health, the poison genetically For China it is also an economic
risk, because importer countries such as A similar GM contamination
case in the US in 2000 resulted in a $1bn (£530m) Although StarLink was grown
on less than 1% of all US cornfields, it was The Chinese rice contamination
was discovered when researchers followed up Sarah North, the GM campaigner
for Greenpeace, said: "This dodgy rice could The discovery of the GM rice
followed a scandal last month over unlicensed Yesterday, three weeks after
being told of the error by the US authorities, The UK Green member of the
European assembly's environment committee,
David Cuming, of Consumers
International, said: "The release of untested The organisation, which represents
250 groups in 115 countries, wants Mr Cuming said the rice and
maize discoveries raised questions about the
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