By Nigel Hunt

Genetically modified crops could offer benefits but safety remains
paramount, Britain's farm ministry said on Thursday, responding to media
reports that the global food crisis may prompt it to relax restrictions.
A report in the Independent newspaper said government ministers were
preparing to open the way for GMO crops to be grown in Britain to help
tackle rocketing food prices and shortages in the world's poorest countries.

The report quoted Phil Woolas, the minister responsible for GMOs, as saying
there was a "growing question of whether GM crops can help the developing
world out of the current food crisis."

A ministry statement said it had always been government policy that GMO
crops could offer a range of benefits over the longer-term but "as Phil
Woolas has reiterated, we have always said that safety is our top priority."

"Phil Woolas has set out the government's existing policy highlighting the
need for continuing discussions to take place. This does not signal a change
in policy," the ministry said.

There has been significant opposition to GMO crops in Britain with concerns
centered on both food safety and possible environmental impacts.

Rising food prices has, however, led to renewed debate.

Britain's chief scientific adviser John Beddington said earlier this year
that GMO crops should not be shunned, adding it "seems to me to be insanity
to throw away potential solutions" while adding it was vital to assess and
potential harm to the environment.

The ministry said GMO technology was not wholly good or bad and GMO crops
should be considered on a case-by-case basis.

"GM crops could offer potential benefits over the longer term including
drought tolerance, improved nutritional qualities, less chemical spraying,
improved yields and the government is keeping an open mind on this issue,"
it said.

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