As the developer of Bt cotton seeds and a host of other conventional hybrid and genetically modified crops, Jalna-based Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Company Ltd (Mahyco) has seen success in the market despite controversy around GM technology. The Rs 540-crore company, in which US biotech giant Monsanto has a 26 percent stake, navigates its way based on what it sees as the farmers' needs, its chief technology officer Usha Barwale Zehr tells B Ramakrishna.
The Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) objected to your trials of new generation Bt cotton with RRF traits. What is your response?
We have followed all the regulations that GEAC has asked us to comply with. The product is the third generation cotton, BG2 RRF. RRF is the herbicide tolerance that comes into the Bt cotton. When you plant Bt cotton in the main plot, there is a refuge requirement around it. The idea behind having a refuge is that the possibility of the insects developing resistance is much delayed. So you need a non-Bt but herbicide tolerant refuge. That has been the discussion.
Wasn't the GEAC informed about the trials?
No, we have done exactly what GEAC has approved in writing and have provided all the documents to them. Sometimes, there are discussions in the committee when all the relevant information may not have been available with them.
A government committee headed by MS Swaminathan had recommended prioritising non-transgenic biofertilisers, biopesticides and bio-remediation. Why is there no movement in that direction?
As people developing products for the farmer, our goal is to look at all possible technologies. One of the challenges that comes up in the case of biofertilisers and biopesticides is their effectiveness on the farm and that is why the reluctance of the farmers to accept them on a large scale. If you look at the farmer, he or she is interested in having a crop and getting a remunerative return from the farm. These technologies have not been effective in providing that option to the farmer.
Is the GM industry in India running ahead of the regulatory system?
Actually the regulatory structure was in place first. Because, for import of seed and cotton we had to have permission from the government. There are also the biosafety guidelines that India has put in place. The system is functional. All the committees meet every month, whether it is the review committee or the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee. Otherwise why would it take 10 years for a product to go to the market?
Is the mistrust in public due to the fact that the source of the information is the companies themselves?
Actually the source of information is not the company. It is the studies done by third parties, which the government recognises. Sometimes it's Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) institutions or the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR) institutions and the reports that are coming from those committees go directly to regulators. For the biotech and GM crops, the biggest issue is the process, which is followed by the government of India and the confusion which exists. We would like to have a transparent system where the guidelines clearly define a process and where the government follows that process.
Is it not happening now?
It is not happening now if you see the case of Bt brinjal for instance. The GEAC, the apex body per the law to approve transgenic products, has given the biosafety clearance for Bt Brinjal but the minister has set that aside because he received representation from NGOs over the process and he would like to have more discussions. The moratorium is not really a time-limited one. That is the conclusion I'm talking about. Why is the moratorium there in the first place?
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There is opposition to GM food crops in the European Union too.
The transgenic food crop that is grown in the EU is maize, and there is no issue with it. The product will go into food chain one way or another either in the animal feed or as oil, starch or sugar syrup going into Coca Cola or something like that.
Is it a risk that GM products not intended for food are entering the food chain?
Actually maize has been deregulated for all use. There are also other specifically industrial products approved by Germany like the GM potato for starch extraction. If you look at the history of GM crops, US started commercial production in 1996. They have been growing food crops like soyabean, corn, strawberry, canola, flavour-savour tomato, there are a number of foods. If you eat anything in United States, unless it specifically says 'GM free', whether it is breakfast cereal or oil used in cooking, you are eating GM food.