Pharma Rice in Missouri Threatens Food Supply

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GMW: Pharma Rice in Missouri Threatens Food Supply

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Fri, 18 Mar 2005 09:00:45 GMT

 

 

 

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Pharma Rice in Missouri Threatens Food Supply

 

 

up to 204.5 acres of pharmaceutical rice could be grown this year in

rice-growing southeast Missouri, the largest planting of a pharmaceutical

crop yet attempted anywhere in the world.

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http://www.naturalnewswire.com/2005/03/pharmaceutical_.html

Pharmaceutical Rice in Missouri Threatens Food Supply

 

Federal and State Officials Urged to Stop Proposed Field Trials to

Protect Farmers, Consumers and the Missouri Rice & Food Industries

 

COLUMBIA, Mo. / WASHINGTON

 

Field trials of genetically engineered, pharmaceutical-producing rice

would result in contamination of the food supply and should not be

allowed to proceed in Missouri, consumer and environmental groups told

federal and state authorities today. Pending state and federal

approval, up

to 204.5 acres of pharmaceutical rice could be grown this year in

rice-growing southeast Missouri, the largest planting of a pharmaceutical

crop yet attempted anywhere in the world. The pharmaceutical rice was

developed by Ventria Bioscience.

 

" Missouri farmers and consumers should not have to worry about drugs

contaminating their crops and food, " said Bill Freese, research analyst

with Friends of the Earth and an expert on biopharming, " but that's just

what will happen if Ventria is allowed to start growing its

pharmaceutical rice in the state. We urge federal and Missouri state

authorities

to just say no to this foolish experimentation with drug-producing

rice. "

 

Biopharming is an experimental technique in which crops like rice,

barley and tobacco are genetically engineered with human or animal

genes to

become biofactories for the production of experimental pharmaceuticals.

Yet not a single plant-made pharmaceutical has been approved by the

Food and Drug Administration.

 

" We must not allow Missouri to become a testing ground for an unproven

technology that threatens farmers, consumers and the state's food

industry, " said Ellen Treimel, field organizer with the Missouri Public

Interest Research Group.

 

In a 13-page briefing paper sent to federal and Missouri state

officials, the groups describe the many ways pharmaceutical rice could be

spread, including by rice-eating birds, floods, cross-pollination with

other

rice or related weeds, rice grains transported in farm machinery, or

human error in cultivation, shipping and disposal.

 

" Just a few years ago, pharmaceutical corn got mixed into soybeans and

regular corn, " said Joseph Mendelson, Legal Director of the Center for

Food Safety. " The contaminated food had to be destroyed, costing

millions of dollars. The same thing could happen with Ventria's rice. "

 

" The Food and Drug Administration has not approved these rice-grown

pharmaceuticals, and it may never do so, " added Freese. " It is

irresponsible of the FDA to allow untested, unapproved pharmaceuticals

to be grown

in food crops when the risks of contamination are so great. "

 

The briefing paper cites scientific studies to highlight the potential

human health impacts of Ventria's pharmaceuticals, which are artificial

versions of human milk and blood proteins. These risks include

aggravation of bacterial infections, allergic reactions and autoimmune

disorders.

 

The groups also dispute claims by industry representatives that

biopharming will be an economic success for rice farmers or that new

jobs will

be created in Missouri.

 

" The claims they're making about new jobs and benefits for Missouri

farmers from biopharming are pure speculation, " said Treimel. " The truth

is, neither Ventria nor any other biopharm company has gotten a single

plant-made pharmaceutical approved by the FDA. No products, no jobs. "

 

Ventria Bioscience is presently based in California. In 2004, federal

and California authorities quashed the company's bid to grow 120 acres

of pharmaceutical rice in Southern California, partly because of a prior

violation of field trial permit conditions. In November 2004, the

company announced plans to set up shop at Northwest Missouri State

University in Maryville. The move was prompted by opposition to

pharmaceutical

rice in California, a $30 million subsidy package from the state of

Missouri, and a laxer regulatory environment in the state.

 

CONTACTS:

 

Bill Freese, Friends of the Earth, 573-447-1588, billfreese

Ellen Treimel, Missouri Public Interest Research Group, 314-454-9560,

etreimel

Craig Culp, Center for Food Safety, 202-547-9359 or 301-509-0925,

cculp

 

March 17, 2005 | Permalink

 

 

 

 

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