Biotech barley bound for field in Iowa
Truth About Trade
Washington,
D.C. – The biotech industry is returning to Iowa this year to grow a
crop for pharmaceutical uses, but it won't be corn this time.
A
California firm plans to grow a biotech variety of barley in the state.
The grain is designed to make a product for boosting the immune system.
“It's a
very productive region where we can effectively grow the crop,” said
Scott Deeter, chief executive of Ventria Bioscience of Sacramento,
Calif.
Another
key factor: There is virtually no commercial barley grown in Iowa, so
the chances of contaminating a food crop are nil, he said.
(more)
Genetic Engineers Back Growing Drugs in Food Crops
CSPI Says Industry & Regulators Sowing Secrecy in America’s New 'Pharm Belt'
Center For Science In The Public Interest
The
controversial practice of using genetic engineering to grow drugs or
industrial chemicals in food crops is picking up speed, according to a
new report from the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI).
While a 2002 scandal involving an errant biopharm crop from Prodigene
temporarily put the brakes on the practice, the Department of
Agriculture (USDA) has received 16 new applications for biopharming
permits in the past 12 months. About two-thirds of those applications
involved a food crop such as corn, rice or barley, but virtually every
other salient detail about the application—-sometimes even the name of
the drug or chemical being produced—-is shielded from public view.
“It is
impossible to know whether these biopharmed crops present any
food-safety or environmental risk, since the whole process is shrouded
in secrecy. Even the Food and Drug Administration is out of the loop,”
said Gregory Jaffe, director of CSPI’s biotechnology project and the
author of the report. “What is clear is that the biopharming industry
has been given a big green light by federal regulators, even though
there is great concern among food producers and consumers about using
food crops to produce drugs. . . .”
. . .
Four permit applications identified Kentucky as the location; three
identified Texas; Missouri, South Carolina, California, and Iowa were
each identified on two applications; Hawaii, Florida, Washington,
Nebraska, and Arizona were each identified on one.
(more)
Blog For Iowa 