WESTERN BUREAU:
LOCAL STAKEHOLDERS are still negotiating the final ownership of the genetically modified papaya (pawpaw) that is resistant to the Papaya Ring spot virus. The virus curtailed local papaya production and dashed hopes of a booming non-traditional export crop with global competitive advantage in the mid-1990s. The country lost forty per cent of its papaya orchards as the virus spread and the presence of the vector, the brown aphid, in the island was confirmed.
Dr Paula Tennant, then a student at Cornell University, started the development of the transgenic papaya variety with financial assistance from the Jamaica Agricultural Development Foundation (JADF). Stakeholders in the variety include Cornell University, the JADF, and the US multinational firm, Monsanto Ltd., which is the dominant player in the genetically modified food market. The National Biosafety Committee of the National Commission on Science and Technology, held a public forum, 'Genetically modified foods - What Jamaicans should know ', at the Wexford Court Hotel, Montego Bay, last Tuesday. Both the presentations and the discussion revealed that at present, Jamaicans know precious little about genetically modified foods (GM foods) despite the fact that we have been consuming them, with most of us being aware of this, for several years. The forum, an activity of the Public Education Programme in BioSafety, provided information on the following subjects:
Genetically modified foods including information on both the potential risks and benefits to humans, other animals and the environment.
The local and international initiatives and achievements aimed at reducing and/or eliminating potential risks.
The status of local research on the genetically modified papaya, which is resistant to the Papaya Ring spot virus. It provided an excellent opportunity for the relatively small, but interested and vocal audience of less than 20 persons and the presenters to discuss real concerns about the GM foods.
The food safety and environmental concerns discussed were:
Food allergies with the case of a GM protein in Star
link corn being cited as an example.
The use of antibiotic marker genes in GM Foods and the potential health disaster as a result of antibiotic resistance.
The negative impact on non-target species.
The potential to create a super weed or a super virus
The decrease in biodiversity.
The non-labelling of GM foods thereby denying consumer choice.
