USDA_told_to_disclose_'biopharm'_locations

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> Subject:

> USDA_told_to_disclose_'biopharm'_locations

 

> " GM_WATCH " <info

> Thu, 5 Aug 2004 13:11:18 +0100

 

>

> GM WATCH daily

> http://www.gmwatch.org

> ---

> An important legal precedent:

>

> Representatives for both sides of the issue said

> this would be the first time in the United States

> that locations of biopharm tests would be revealed

> to an outside party. That could set a precedent for

> similar disclosures in other states and could pave

> the way for disclosing the locations of all

> genetically modified crop research.

> ---

> USDA told to disclose 'biopharm' locations

> Sean Hao

> Advertiser Staff Writer

> Honolulu Advertiser

> Thursday, August 5, 2004

>

http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2004/Aug/05/ln/ln07a.html

>

> The federal government must reveal where companies

> grow genetically modified pharmaceutical crops in

> Hawai'i, a judge ruled yesterday.

>

> Public interest groups are seeking the information

> to force the government to study the environmental

> impact of the crops they see as potentially

> dangerous. The government and industry contend

> public disclosure could lead to crop vandalism and

> corporate espionage of trade secrets.

>

> After weighing the arguments, U.S. District Judge

> David Ezra ordered the U.S. Department of

> Agriculture to identify where four companies have

> received permits for open-field testing of

> pharmaceutical crops in Hawai'i and to reveal the

> locations to the environmental watchdog group

> Earthjustice and the Center for Food Safety, a

> nonprofit that challenges food production

> technologies.

>

> " It's definitely a victory, " said Isaac Moriwake, an

> attorney for Earthjustice. " It's basically an

> affirmation that the defendants haven't been able to

> show that this kind of information is confidential. "

>

> Ezra gave the USDA another 90 days to prove that

> releasing the locations to the public would cause

> irreparable damage to the biotech industry. That

> step could force biotech companies to look elsewhere

> to conduct their pharmaceutical crop tests, a

> biotech industry representative said yesterday.

>

> " It's disappointing, " said Lisa Dry, a spokeswoman

> for the Biotechnology Industry Organization. If crop

> locations were made public, it would be " a real

> detriment for continuing to do business in that

> area. Basically it would be viewed as an unfriendly

> business environment for technology of any sort. "

>

> Earthjustice sought the locations of so-called

> biopharms to force the USDA to conduct environmental

> impact statements before allowing open-field crop

> research. Biopharming is a relatively new area of

> research where plants are engineered to produce

> nonfood items, such as drugs or industrial

> chemicals. Without confirmation of the locations,

> Earthjustice would have difficulty making the case

> for an environmental impact statement.

>

> Ezra said yesterday that the locations of such tests

> don't constitute confidential business information.

> He also said the government and the Biotechnology

> Industry Organization failed to provide sufficient

> evidence that such crops would be damaged if their

> locations were revealed.

>

> Representatives for both sides of the issue said

> this would be the first time in the United States

> that locations of biopharm tests would be revealed

> to an outside party. That could set a precedent for

> similar disclosures in other states and could pave

> the way for disclosing the locations of all

> genetically modified crop research.

>

> In Hawai'i, Monsanto Co., the Hawaii Agriculture

> Research Center, ProdiGene Inc. and Garst Seed Co.

> have been granted permits to test biopharm crops.

> Under Ezra's order, the locations of the testing

> will be disclosed to Earthjustice, but they must

> keep the information confidential for at least 90

> days.

>

> Environmental groups and food processors contend

> that open-field testing of biopharm crops is racing

> ahead of what is known about potential risks to the

> environment, people and the food supply. Industry

> officials contend that government regulations

> sufficiently minimize such risks.

>

> Dry said research into using plants to produce drugs

> or industrial chemicals holds promise for producing

> compounds cheaper and faster than in factories. The

> seed-crop industry employs an estimated 1,190 people

> in Hawai'i in relatively high-wage jobs. In the past

> decade, the value of the state's seed-crop industry,

> 40 percent of which is estimated to involve

> genetically engineered crops, has grown fivefold, to

> a record $50.5 million. The amount spent on biopharm

> crop tests is unknown, but represents a small

> fraction of the industry in Hawai'i.

>

> Hawai'i leads all states in open-air test sites of

> genetically engineered crops.

>

> Michael Rodemeyer, executive director for the

> independent Pew Initiative on Food and

> Biotechnology, said there are strong arguments on

> both sides of the disclosure issue.

>

> " Certainly there are ways to make more information

> available to consumers, " he said. " It's not clear

> that crop location information is really going to

> help people understand more about what these safety

> issues are.

>

> " It may give them a greater sense of confidence, but

> that has to in turn be weighed against the potential

> that these crops could end up being destroyed which

> may end up spreading some of these crops around. "

>

> Reach Sean Hao at shao or

> 525-8093.