POLL - US farmers hesitant to grow bio-pharm crops

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POLL - US farmers hesitant to grow " bio-pharm " crops

 

 

USA: January 23, 2003

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TAMPA, Fla - Nearly half of U.S. farmers surveyed said they were undecided or

opposed to growing biotech crops engineered to produce drugs for ailments like

diabetes, according to a Reuters poll released yesterday.

Questions were raised about so-called " bio-pharm " crops last month after three

U.S. biotech firms were fined by the federal government for mishandling

experimental crops in Hawaii and Nebraska.

Some U.S. food makers and environmental groups have demanded a ban on the new

crops until stricter federal controls are in place to prevent

cross-contamination of crops for human or animal food.

In a Reuters straw poll of 340 growers, conducted this week at the American Farm

Bureau Federation's annual meeting, 13 percent said they opposed planting

pharmaceutical crops. Half the farmers surveyed said they would consider

planting the new kinds of crops, which are expected to command premium prices.

Another 35 percent of growers said they needed more information about health and

safety issues before deciding whether to grow them.

" I don't oppose biotech crops, but (with) bio-pharm I just don't know enough

even though I read about them, " said Sam DeNeal, an Illinois corn and soybean

grower at the meeting of the nation's largest farm group.

The survey was conducted with random personal interviews during the American

Farm Bureau meeting. The Reuters survey results do not attempt to weight

responses by state, size of farm or other criteria.

3 BIOTECH FIRMS FINED

In 2002, about 300 acres of U.S. crop land were planted with experimental

bio-pharm crops. The new crops developed by Dow Chemical Co (DOW.N) and others

are expected to soon be commercialized so drugmakers can use corn plants to grow

medicinal compounds more cheaply.

DeNeal, who said the U.S. Agriculture Department is doing enough to prevent

cross-contamination between pharmaceutical and traditional crops, added that he

might consider planting them once there is more information.

In response to a separate question, 60 percent of farmers surveyed said the USDA

should allow pharmaceutical crops to be grown near traditional plantings if they

are safe.

The future of bio-pharm crops was thrown in flux in December after three

companies were fined for not doing enough to keep their experimental fields

separate from other crops.

The USDA ordered ProdiGene Inc., a small biotech firm, to spend an estimated

$2.8 million to buy and destroy some 500,000 bushels of soybeans accidentally

contaminated with a small amount of an experimental corn plant engineered to

produce trypsin for diabetes. ProdiGene was also fined $250,000.

Separately, the Environmental Protection Agency fined Pioneer Hi-Bred and Dow

AgroSciences for violating regulations to isolate experimental crops and prevent

pollen from blowing into other fields. Each paid a fine of less than $10,000.

About 24 percent of U.S. farmers surveyed said those incidents made it less

likely that they would plant pharmaceutical crops. Ten percent said they were

more likely to plant bio-pharm crops because the fines showed the government was

enforcing its rules.

" BLOWN OUT OF PROPORTION "

Some farmers surveyed at the meeting sought to downplay the ProdiGene

contamination.

" (The ProdiGene case) was blown out of proportion, " said Kenneth Boswell, a

member of the Aurora Cooperative elevator in Nebraska that held ProdiGene's

contaminated soybeans.

Boswell contends that plants engineered to produce specific proteins could lower

the costs to combat diseases such as diabetes, AIDS and Alzheimer's.

" The potential good of the pharmaceutical crops outweigh the risks, " Boswell

said.

Still, he acknowledged the recent problems confronting ProdiGene could make it

difficult in the near-term to convince skeptics to embrace pharmaceutical crops.

After initially saying that such crops should not be planted in " major areas of

crop production " for food and feed uses, the Biotechnology Industry Organization

reversed its position last month. The trade group said bio-pharm crops should be

planted throughout the nation, provided that federal rules are strong enough to

prevent cross-contamination with traditional crops.

The move was a victory for Midwest states such as Illinois, Kansas and Iowa,

which see bio-pharm crops as an important way to boost farm income.

 

 

Story by Christopher Doering

Story 23/1/2003

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