by Prabha Jagannathan
The Economic Times via SEARCA Biotechnology Information Center

GMO testing is being pitched as the sunrise industry to watch. One international market analyst pegged the potential for transgenics in India alone at $400 million. The industry has come more sharply into focus with the EU, as of April 18, adopting new norms for GM traceability in imports that require that all foods with more than 0.9% GMOs should be labelled.

A Greenpeace survey released recently also revealed that more Chinese consumers will choose non-GM foods over GM foods once labelling based on traceability became more stringent through mandatory laws in that country. With the US taking the EU ban on biotech foods to the WTO, traceability testing - virtually non-existent in this country as of now, thanks to low-technology - has become more crucial in the industry's GM discourse here, vis a vis both imports and exports.

While the former is necessary to protect consumer health and sharpen awareness - a case in point is the imported soyaoil controversy - the latter is expected to impact directly on the value of exports in the future, particularly in GM sensitive regions such as the EU, Japan and Korea, Australia, NZ and even West Asia.

A small nation such as Sri Lanka has also begun aligning its quality standards including traceability tests to that of the EU. Given the increasing strictures worldwide on GMO imports, India is busy positioning itself as the largest exporter of non-GMO foods, something that definitely would require a key role for GMO testing.

Testing will cover a range of exports including bakery and confectionery products (coffee), cattle feed supplements (tobacco), dry fruits and nuts (tea), dyes and colour additives (spices and derivatives), edible oil and allied products (seeds), flavours and aromatics (rice, wheat, pulses and other food grains) food processing plants (processed food and snacks), fresh, dried, preserved and dehydrated fruits and vegetables (pickles, chutneys, ketchups and sauces), liquors, mineral water and beverages (natural, dried, live and grafted plants), meat and poultry food (milk and dairy products).

There are indications that the government is keen to place the onus for traceability testing in industry more on the private sector in the future. And that is where a pioneer agri-biotech and life sciences company such as Avesthagen Quality Agricultural Services (AQUAS) comes into the picture.

The Bangalore-based outfit, with its state-of-the-art traceability testing labs for foods in the ICRISAT campus in Hyderabad, has virtually wrangled itself a first mover advantage enhanced further with its cutting edge Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technology. One that, in fact, is capable of tracing GMO to the 0.1% level. Speaking with ET, Manan Bhatt, VP (Business Development) emphasises "Strictly speaking, virtually nothing is 100% GMO free.

But world over, various stakeholders in agri-business - consumers, governments, traders and manufacturers - are increasingly becoming aware and anxious of GM crops, food and fibre. This is especially true for exporters targeting advanced economies so that the consumer there can be offered the choice. And that's where our services come in. Needless to state, firms with non-GMO certified products will have the competitive edge, perceived value addition and greater acceptance."

Mr Bhatt dismisses questions on the international acceptability of its GMO tracing tests, pointing to AQUAS' clinching alliance for lab testing with traceability testing major Genetic ID. That firm won accreditation on all of its analytical methods through the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS), recognised throughout Europe and widely on five continents. AQUAS is now the exclusive licence holder of Genetic ID for Bangladesh and India, following all of its protocols, procedures and instructions.

Now, the company has also begun providing Total Plant Certification ID, which is sample-free, besides moving into Seed Purity Testing including guaranteeing genetic purity through DNA fingerprinting. With 150 lakh quintals of seed requirement estimated for the 10th Plan period, and only 15% of certified seeds being distributed from the organised private and public sector, that would be crucial.

It's current cachet of clients include some heavyweights in food product exports - which is where the company is currently concentrating-include HLL, ITC, Ruchi (the soya major) and Satnam Overseas (top rung Basmati exporters). In fact, the country's top soya producers association, SOPA, invited AQUAS to the country's soya capital Indore in September for a detailed briefing session on GMO testing. Food export majors are not the only clients for AQUAS, with even smaller sized firms such as guargum exporters Vikas, based in north west Rajasthan, using AQUAS services.