GM Crops

GM Rice: Business Aspects

Business Aspects of Worldwide GM Rice Production
Winga Chow

In addition to being a staple food in many Asian countries, rice is the world's third largest crop. Speaking globally, production, trade and consumption of rice have a significant impact on the marketplace. To ensure that a sufficient amount of food could be provided to their citizens, governments of various Asian countries have been funding research looking for more efficient ways of production. In fact, starting about 3 decades ago, Asian farmers had been rapidly altering their traditional farming methods, resulting in "a near doubling of Asian rice production in the 1960s and 1980s" (1). However, the use of genetically modified rice (GM rice) has long been a controversial issue discussed by both scientists and consumers. By reading this article, you will get a better idea of GM rice production in terms of its geographic locations and its situation in the world. You will also learn about how GM rice is regulated in different countries.

Even though rice is mainly a staple food in Asia, where the average person consumes rice two to three times a day, development of GM rice is not limited to Asian countries (e.g. China, Japan, Korea, and the Philippines). According to the "Consumer's Guide to GM Rice and Other Grains," the United States, Switzerland, Mexico, Australia and Italy are also developing GM rice (2). A list of agencies from all over the world that are actively involved in GM rice development is presented below. This list comes from "Consumer's Guide to GM Rice and Other Grains" (with the name of the agency and traits they are modifying) but I have modified it by adding their country of origin.

GM Rice Developers (Traits Being Modified):

AgrEvo (male sterility) - USA
American Cyanamid (herbicide resistance) -USA
AstraZeneca (beta-carotene content) - UK
Aventis (herbicide resistance) -UK
Catholic University of Piacenza (insect resistance) - Italy
Chinese government (insect resistance) - China
Chonnam National University, Korea (higher yields) - Korea
Du Pont (protein content) - Australia
Institute of Genetics, Berlin (starch content) - Germany
Institute of Plant Sciences, Zurich (beta-carotene content) - Germany
International Rice Research Institute (beta-carotene content) - The Philippines
Japan Tobacco (altered photosynthesis/flowering) - Japan
Kubota (yield increase, protein content) - Japan
Louisiana State University (bacterial resistance) - USA
Misubishi (viral resistance) - Japan
Mitsui (yield increase, starch content) - Japan
Monsanto (herbicide tolerance) - UK
Novartis (herbicide tolerance) - USA
Pioneer Hi-Bred (pest resistance and fungal resistance) - USA
Rockefeller Foundation (enhanced nutrition) - USA
Science University of Tokyo (hepatitis vaccine) - Japan
University of California (bacterial resistance) - USA
Washington State University (bigger grains) - USA
West Africa Rice Development Association (higher yields) – Africa (2)

Golden rice, as a second generation of genetically modified rice, provides pro-vitamin A to consumers. A yellow-orange element called beta-carotene, which our bodies can convert into vitamin A, is found inside this genetically modified rice. Some agencies suggest that the adoption of golden rice consumption may be a solution to vitamin A deficiency, which is very common and causes blindness in many developing countries. Some suggested that, with lower cost of production for GM rice, abandoning the old method of rice production might help alleviate poverty in developing countries. For these reasons, according to an article published by the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications, technology of GM rice production might be accepted much faster than other crops and act as a catalyst to the wider adoption and acceptance of GM crop technology" (3). Also, when countries such as the United States start to develop rice using their own GM technology, their imports of the crop will be reduced; hence, the balance of international agriculture trade may be affected.

Unmodified rice → ← Golden rice

GM technology for rice production may be thriving but a lot of communities are reluctant to consume the product. According to Deborah Whitman, labeling of GM food products is a big issue in the United States. Agribusiness industries feel that labeling should be voluntary, because they claim that labeling is influenced by the demands in the free market. They will perform self regulation or risk losing customers if it is shown by market demand that labeled foods are preferred over non-labeled ones. On the other hand, several interest groups are insisting on mandatory labeling. They argue that consumers have the right to know what exactly they are ingesting while historically the food industry is proven to be unreliable at self-surveillance concerning public safety. Despite the dilemma, an international trade agreement for labeling GM foods, which involved more than 130 countries, was recognized in January 2000. Exporters are required to label all GM foods and importing countries have every right to reject GM foods if they think potential risk exists.

Depending on the political, social and economic status within a region or country, different regulations are being applied all over the world. Testing of GM foods has been mandatory in Japan since April 2001. Both GM foods and unmodified foods are sold in the market and it is shown that Japanese customers prefer unmodified foods. India is very supportive of transgenic plant research but no policy has been announced yet. Anti-GM campaigns are especially strong in Europe and as a result, mandatory labeling of GM foods is required in Europe. In the United Sates, three government agencies form the regulatory system. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency examines GM crops for environmental safety, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates the potential risk of production and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration evaluates whether the food is safe for consumption (4).

GM rice production becomes a contentious issue because the technology involved has considerable potential benefits while at the same time poses potential risks. Agribusiness industries worldwide have been developing and improving their GM technology to provide lower cost of production as well as better nutrition. With its significant importance in Asian countries and its low-cost appeal to developing countries, GM rice is very likely to be the first GM crop that gains worldwide acceptance. Although regulations vary greatly among continents, an international agreement was established in 2000, which is the first step to regulate GM crops in the global market.

References:

Normile, Dennis. "Asia Gets a Taste of Genetic Food Fights." Science Vol. 289, No. 5483. 25 Aug 2000 1279-1281. 27 Nov 2006. .
Jack, Alex. " Consumer's Guide to GM Rice and Other Grains." Organic Consumers Association. 2001. Amberwaves. 5 Dec 2006 .
Brookes, G. and P. Barfoot. "GM Rice: Will This Lead the Technology?" The International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications Briefs No. 28. 2003. 5 Dec 2006. .
Whitman, Deborah. "Genetically Modified Foods: Harmful or Helpful?" Discovery Guides. Apr 2000. CSA. 5 Dec 2006.

December 2006