InangLupa censures SC decision banning Bt eggplant
Published: Tuesday, 26 January 2016 Written by OpinYon
A former agriculture secretary and head of a global agricultural research facility joins the Philippine science community in the condemnation of a recent decision of the Supreme Court (SC) that bans the field testing of theBacillus thuringiensis (Bt) eggplant in the country, and nullifies a related government policy.
“The recent decision of the Supreme Court that bans the field-testing of Bt eggplant and nullifies a related DA Administrative Order is a huge setback in our continuing quest to produce adequate, affordable, safer and nutritious food for millions of Filipinos,” said Dr. William D. Dar, currently president of InangLupa Movement and former director general of the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), in India.
“We at InangLupa join the Philippine science community in condemning the Supreme Court decision as it conveys a dampening effect on Filipino crop scientists and researchers, negating their hardwork and dedication. If this continues, the country will not only again expect a brain drain of its experts but will most importantly lose an economic opportunity,” said Dr. Dar.
“We consider the SC decision as a setback that the Department of Agriculture and the country’s scientific community, including concerned NGOs like InangLupa Movement, should hurdle, and we will support the DA in its move, if any, to lodge before the Supreme Court a motion for reconsideration,” he added.
“InangLupa sees this as a significant deceleration of agricultural development. The clock of science is being held back. Scientific research must continue. The country will not be able to harness its agriculture especially in meeting food demand and quality if the SC decision is not reversed, he said.
“The debate on genetically modified (GM) crops, such as Bt eggplant, continues not only in the country but worldwide, but we maintain that biotechnology products are founded on science, and thus are safe,” Dar said.
On the safeness of Bt eggplant, Dar added that science experts like Robert Goldberg, a renowned plant molecular biologist at UCLA, said GM crops go through rigor of tests, and in the event of a health threat, it can be quickly identified and eliminated since the gene can be tracked, including the activity of every single gene around it.
It has been noted that even the backing on GM crops by key associations like the American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Medical Association, and National Academy of Sciences, including favorable research results from academic bodies of other countries, including the Philippines has not been sufficient to temper the noise made by anti-GM interest groups.
Dar said the economic benefits of commercializing GM crops have to be factored in. In addition to increased yields, the cultivation of GM crops means less use of chemicals. He said David Zilberman, a noted agricultural and environmental economist, the yields of Bt corn, Bt cotton and Bt soya have increased by 20 to 30 percent, enabling farmers to profit considerably.
“The adoption of Bt eggplant would mean more income for poor Filipino farmers, and more affordable eggplant for consumers,” Dar noted.
Further, he said with the country’s increasing population, at over 100 million, there is an urgency to produce more affordable and nutritious food for Filipino families, from dwindling land and water resources. There is also climate change, which exacerbates the situation. Therefore, we have to rely on GM crops that have been found to produce more yields and can withstand various production risks, like low and high temperatures, insects, and diseases,” Dar said.
“The SC ruling against Bt eggplant, is a clear case, of non-consideration and perhaps even ignorance of the merits of GM crops. It should allow for further testing with good oversight,” he added.
The SC decision also nullifies the Department of Agriculture Administrative Order (DA-AO) No. 8 Series of 2002, which Dar said poses a major setback, as it will affect the importation and release into the environment of plants and plant products derived from the use of modern biotechnology.
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