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Ghent, Belgium
August 8, 2001
The
VIB report entitled “Safety of Genetically Engineered Crops”
triggers further discussion on what safety standards to apply to
genetically modified crops.
The VIB report published today, “Safety of Genetically
Engineered Crops”, shows more in detail how the risk assessment
of genetically modified (GM) crops works and on what data the
conclusions of authorities are based. The report concludes that
the GM crops currently on the market are as safe as their
conventional counterparts. The report also tries to look into
the
future and discusses some of the issues for the safety
assessment of future GM crops. The report was initiated as part
of VIB’s mission to stimulate a scientifically well-founded
dialogue on biotechnology (more information:
www.vib.be).
The VIB-report “Safety of Genetically Engineered Crops” is
divided into five topics:
(1) food safety
(2) vertical gene flow
(3) non-target effects
(4) allergenicity
(5) horizontal gene flow
Scientific contributions on these topics were made by experts in
these fields, respectively: Ib Knudsen and Jan Pedersen
(Institute of Food Safety and Toxicology, Soborg, DK), Klaus
Ammann (Botanical Garden, Bern, CH), Julian Kinderlerer
(University of Sheffield, UK), André Penninks (TNO-nutrition,
Zeist, NL), and Philippe Gay (GMOs consultant, Asnières, FR).
Each author has provided an overview of data and information
used in the risk assessment of GM crops. They concluded that for
the GM crops currently on the market from a safety point of view
there are no problems. On the other hand they do formulate some
concerns for the future when the modifications of crops may
become much more complex, and for which there may be a need to
develop some additional assessment tools. These tools are
currently being developed, especially for food safety and
allergenicity and they are discussed in the report. The authors
also explicitly state that several of the concerns expressed
about the safety of genetically engineered crops, apply just as
well to a number of the conventional bred varieties, for which
no explicit safety testing is required by the current
regulations.
When looking at the safety assessment of GM crops separately one
will still improve this assessment – every day new knowledge and
methods are being produced that can be used to increase the
level of certainty of absence of undesired effects - but on the
other hand this development does not go hand in hand with an
improvement of the safety level of conventional varieties, where
in fact there is a situation of a standstill (no safety testing
required). This makes the report conclude that when the
developments in the safety assessment of genetically engineered
crops go on at the same pace as today, in the future the
situation may be such that GM crops may become safer than
conventional crops.
What are the safety levels that we achieve? From a political,
consumer and environmental point of view an improved safety
level and less uncertainty about the possible effects of GM
crops is of
course applauded, but the report also concludes that “a better
definition of what types of environmental effects are
acceptable, and how much uncertainty about the absence of
unwanted
environmental effects is acceptable can greatly help the risk
assessment of GM crops. This would even be more so if this
understanding would be translated into a set of broadly defined
criteria for these crops”. A 100% certainty or zero risk is
impossible to achieve, and therefore we have to be more explicit
about what safety level we want to achieve, placing GM crops
into perspective with other technologies capable of producing
new crop varieties.
Request your free copy of the report “Safety of Genetically
Engineered Crops” at vib@vib.be
or download it as
PDF-file here.
VIB is a biotech research
institute founded on April 5 1995, by the Government of
Flanders, on the initiative of Minister President Luc Van den
Brande. Biotechnology was identified as a key technology for
Flanders and the authorities supported the prominence of
Flanders in this area through the creation of VIB.
VIB has three major objectives: to perform high quality
research, to valorise research results and technology and to
stimulate a wellstructured public dialogue on biotechnology.
More information:
VIB - Rene Custers
tel: ++ 32 9 244 6611
fax: ++ 32 9 244 6610
email: René Custers -
rene.custers@vib.be
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