Genetically modified corn was sold for four years without approval

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http://www.world-science.net/othernews/050322_cornfrm.htm

 

 

 

 

Genetically modified corn was sold for four years without approval: report

 

Posted March 22, 2005

Courtesy Nature

and World Science staff

 

A strain of genetically modified corn that lacks regulatory approval

has been distributed accidentally over the past four years, the

scientific journal Nature reported in a news story today.

 

" Although the crop is believed to be safe, the fact that it was sold

for years by accident will undoubtedly raise questions about how

carefully biotechnology firms are controlling their activities, " the

journal said in an announcement.

 

Several hundred tons of the wrong seed were sold between 2001 and 2004

by Basil, Switzerland-based Syngenta International, one of the world's

largest agricultural biotechnology companies, Nature said.

 

The company revealed its mistake to U.S. regulators at the end of last

year, and agency officials have since launched an investigation into

the release, the report said.

 

Syngenta has approval to sell a variety of transgenic corn known as

Bt11, which contains a gene from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis

that is inserted into the crop to act as a pesticide.

 

But it has emerged that the company inadvertently sold seeds of Bt10

corn, a variety that contains a slightly different genetic

modification that has not been approved. In a statement released to

the journal on March 14, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

confirmed that U.S. government agencies are investigating.

 

The journal's announcement said that although there are no safety

concerns, regulatory agencies are " conducting investigations to

determine the circumstances surrounding and extent of any violations

of relevant laws and regulations " .

 

Syngenta issued a statement saying it has " identified, destroyed or

otherwise contained " all of the product mistakenly released.

 

" During advanced testing, Syngenta recently discovered an unintended

event… in a small number of its corn breeding lines used primarily for

pre-commercial development, " the company said in its statement.

 

" The Bt protein produced by these lines is identical to that produced

by the commercialized, fully approved Bt11 varieties. Therefore, there

is no change to the food, health and environmental profile of the corn.

 

" Upon this discovery, Syngenta immediately informed the EPA, FDA and

USDA. These regulatory agencies have also confirmed the food, feed and

environmental safety of Bt10. All current plantings and seed stock

containing this material have been identified and destroyed or

otherwise contained. "

 

Syngenta's insect resistant product Bt11 was approved for cultivation

and food use in 1996 in the United States and for food and feed use in

Japan in 1996 and the European Union in 1998, according to the company.

 

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