www.checkbiotech.org ; www.raupp.info ; www.czu.cz

Brazil's new biotechnology policy could make it easier for
genetically-modified organisms to get commercial approval, the private
National Biosafety Association, ANBio, February 2007 by Kenneth Rapoza .

"If this policy is really implemented and not just something on paper,
then we will see faster commercialization of transgenic seeds in Brazil,"
said Leila Oda, president of ANBio.

The process of commercial approval for transgenic seeds is in the hands of
Brazil's Biosafety Commission, or CTNBio, which counts on the opinions of
various ministries, from the science and technology departments to
environmental and health ministers.

"Bureaucracy and ideology will be eliminated. The focus will be on the
science," Oda said.

The government said it will invest 510 million Brazilian reals ($242
million) over the next two years and BRL10 billion over the next 10 years to
make Brazil one of the top five leaders in crop science research and
application.

Not all the money will go to researching transgenic crops. Some BRL300
million have been set aside for pharmaceutical studies, equipment, and
agroenergy, according to the Science and Technology Ministry.

For Brazilian farmers, approval of genetically modified crops, long a
political controversy, doesn't just mean productivity improvements. It means
saving money and controlling costs.

"Farmers don't have any control over the foreign exchange rate. And the
(Brazilian) real keeps strengthening against the dollar. Farmers don't have
any control over commodity prices in the U.S. What do they control? Overhead
expenses. They're going to want to reduce costs and one way is GMO," said
Fabio Meneghin, a consultant for agribusiness consultancy, Agroconsult.

Brazil's government crop science institute, Embrapa, said farmers can save
as much as 15% to 20% on agrochemicals and other costs by planting
transgenic soy and cotton.

The 2006-07 season marks the first time Brazilian farmers were permitted to
plant transgenic soy. Some 50% of the crop is expected to be genetically
modified. Soy is Brazil's No. 1 crop, followed by corn.

To cut costs, corn farmers plant illegal transgenic corn. Farmers charge
that CTNBio takes too long to approve genetically modified organisms.

Only Monsanto's Roundup Ready soy and Bollgard cotton are permitted on
Brazilian farms. Various companies have been granted licenses to make
varieties of the Monsanto seeds for different soil and climate types
throughout Brazil.

Makers of transgenic corn, like Bayer CropScience and Syngenta Seeds, are
still waiting for CTNBio to approve their products.

Six of the 10 transgenic seeds awaiting government approval are corn, three
are cotton and one is rice. Bayer, Syngenta, Monsanto and Dow AgroSciences,
a Dow Chemical company, are all waiting for approval. CTNBio meets again on
March 20.

"Brazil farmers need transgenic crops to cut costs, especially for corn and
cane," Meneghin said.

"Any policy that attempts to make the commercialization process easier is
welcome by farmers. Though it won't be viewed as friendly to
environmentalists," Meneghin said. This week, a Parana state judge ordered
CTNBio to cancel its final review of Bayer's LibertyLink corn slated for
next week.

[dowjones.com]