Farmers encouraged to be rational about GMOs

Farmers encouraged to be rational about GMOs

Leo Wahyudi S, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A spokesperson for a company supplying genetically modified crops
is urging farmers to remain calm and rational in responding to
the increasing use of these crops, saying that extensive lab
tests had shown them to be safe.

Tri Soekirman, spokesperson for PT Monagro Kimia, played down
the increasing harsh reaction to genetically modified seeds,
which have not been widely accepted here.

"They (the seeds) have been through scientific tests that are
reliable," she told The Jakarta Post.

Her comments come amid growing reaction from farmers and
environmental organizations to the growing presence and use of
genetically modified crops and seeds in the country.

Farmers in South Sulawesi, aided by environmental groups such
as the National Consortium for Nature and Forest Conservation
(Konphalindo) and the Indonesian Center for Environmental Law
(ICEL), are reportedly on the verge of filing a class action suit
against South Sulawesi Gubernatorial Decree No. 89/2001.

The decree is considered flawed since it allows the planting
of transgenic cotton beyond the seven regencies in the province
permitted by Minister of Agriculture Decree No. 107/2001.

They also claim that the final yield of transgenic cotton did
not lived up to earlier promises, as activists and farmers claim
that it produced at the most 1.2 tons per hectare and not three
tons as initially claimed.

As a result, activists and farmers in the province are also
rejecting reports that Round Ready (RR) transgenic corn will also
be used there.

Transgenic cotton and corn are supplied by PT Monsanto from
South Africa through Jakarta-based PT Monagro Kimia.

Transgenic, or genetically modified, organisms are touted to
create higher quality crops and stocks by the insertion of genes
from other species. The biologically engineered products are
meant to protect the plant from pests or make it resistant to a
specific herbicide.

Tri Soekirman, however, insists that Monagro Kimia has
immediate plans to introduce other genetically modified crops to
the region.

The continuing controversy shows that in an age of
biotechnology Indonesia is ill-prepared to face challenges in the
field of genetically modified food products.

Scientists, activists, farmers and businesspeople continue the
debate while the government remains ambiguous in its position.

A lack of legal guidelines on genetically modified organisms
(GMO), inadequate verification mechanisms and an uninformed
public due to a meager information campaign continue to shroud
GMO products in ambiguity.

If such products are safe, then they should be exploited to
help farmers and consumers produce the best yield. But if they
are considered hazardous then they should not be allowed to
furtively enter the market as they have done.

There have been calls from the Indonesian Consumers Foundation
for the labeling of such products.

However, the government has yet to effectively implement the
1999 regulation on food labeling and advertising.

Ministry of Health, along with the ministries of agriculture
and forestry, has yet to decide on the level of GMOs that must be
declared on product labeling.

Antonius Suwanto, a researcher at the Southeast Asian Regional
Center for Tropical Biology in Bogor, however, maintains that
labeling is unnecessary.

"Transgenic products cannot be generalized as it needs
studious case analysis," he said, underlining that transgenic
products have thus far been proven harmless and adding that many
genetically engineered products have been passed by the United
States' Food and Drugs Administration (FDA).

Nevertheless the researcher failed to account for possible
implications of transgenic crops to the ecosystem.

"We need about five to six years to evaluate all possible
risks," Antonius conceded.