By Carey Gillam
U.S. biotech crop companies unveiled a plan for new industry standards
at a time when the sector faces unfavorable court rulings and concerns that
lax government oversight is allowing contamination of crops used in food and
animal feed.
Leaders of the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) and
executives with Monsanto Co. and DuPont Co., two biotech crop giants, said
they hoped the plan, which includes third-party auditing, will help
agricultural players around the world feel confident that biotech crop
development is subject to stringent safety standards.
Genetically modified (GMO) food crops like corn and soybeans have
emerged over the last decade as a popular tool used by farmers to fight
weeds and insects.

U.S. regulators have encouraged the trend, agreeing with corporate
backers who say science shows GMO crops are as safe as conventional crops
and essentially identical in nutrition and food traits. But many consumer
and environmental groups and governments around the world fear the crops can
cause human and animal health problems as well as weed resistance and other
environmental problems.

"It is our hope that this effort by BIO will insure that everyone in
the industry chooses to use these high standards. They'll guarantee that all
biotech products are as safe as their conventional counterparts," said Tom
West, vice president at Pioneer Hi-Bred International, a DuPont subsidiary.

Reaction to courts as well as consumers?

The action comes after a federal judge in May issued a landmark ruling
overturning U.S. government approval for Monsanto's "Roundup Ready" biotech
alfalfa, a crop used as animal fodder and modified to be resistant to
herbicides.

U.S. District Court Judge Charles Breyer of the Northern District of
California found that the USDA acted illegally when it allowed unrestricted
commercial planting of the crop without fully analyzing the environmental
impact.

The USDA for years has assured consumer groups and foreign governments
that safety is a top concern for regulators. But at least three recent court
rulings have found regulatory oversight lacking. And a report from USDA's
Office of Inspector General warned in December 2005 of numerous holes in
USDA oversight.

USDA now has proposed a series of changes to make oversight of some
biotech crop development projects more stringent.

After several incidents of unapproved genetically modified plant
particles contaminating food crops, the U.S.-based Center for Food Safety, a
public interest group, has called for a moratorium on all field tests of GMO
crops until federal oversight improves.

Center spokesman Bill Freese said on Wednesday that the BIO initiative
seemed aimed more at improving the image of the industry than in improving
crop safety.

"The biotech companies have been responsible for a number of
contamination episodes that have caused great harm to farmers," said Freese.
"The new stewardship program...is designed to make people feel good about
the industry and not actually protect farmers and consumers."

Industry executives said on Wednesday that its program would work
alongside government regulations. BIO will issue a "Quality Management
Program Guide" on best practices for its 1,100 members, and others involved
in agricultural biotechnology research and development.

BIO also said it will adopt a third-party audit program designed to
confirm quality management systems and compliance.

"We see it as a really positive step," Monsanto executive vice
president Jerry Steiner said. "The industry supports strong science-based
federal regulation. This is a complement to that."


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