Today is the "World Health Day." Food safety issues that are closely related to people's health are once again receiving widespread attention. Among them, diverse genetically modified foods have become one of the hot topics. For more than a decade, the cultivation of genetically modified crops has been widely promoted in many countries around the world.
However, the debate over the safety of genetically modified foods has never stopped. The United States, as the country with the largest area of ​​GM crops planted in the world, has been actively promoting the development of GM technology, and the principle of “harmful management†has been followed in supervision. In contrast, European people have always been concerned about genetically modified foods. EU countries are in this respect. The supervision is "preventive" and does not leak.
status quo
According to the report of ISAAA, in the past ten years, the cultivation of GM foods has achieved sufficient development.
ISAAA said that 77% of world soybean production comes from genetically modified crops, 48% of world cotton production is genetically modified, and the proportion of genetically modified corn and rapeseed exceeds 25% and 20%, respectively.
The United States is the country with the largest area of ​​GM crops in the world, followed by Brazil and Argentina. At present, 48% of genetically modified crops are grown in developing countries, but developed countries are "catching up."
United States: Largest Exporter of Genetically Modified Food
In 1993, fresh-ripened ripe tomatoes were successfully listed in the United States, marking the beginning of the life of Americans with genetically modified foods. Today, the United States has become the fastest growing country in terms of genetically modified technology, and the U.S. public accepts the highest level of genetically modified foods.
By the end of 2010, about 5% of the agricultural products in the U.S. market were genetically modified crops, and about 70% of the corn line was genetically modified. In addition, the proportion of genetically modified soybeans in the United States market is also high.
At the same time, the United States is also the world’s largest exporter of GM foods.
Europe: People strongly resent GM foods
Compared with Americans, Europeans have a strong feeling of resentment against genetically modified foods. Many environmental organizations in Europe have long condemned genetically modified technology. At the beginning of the 21st century, European anti-genetic food users raised a wave of reports on the damage of genetically modified foods in the media, warning people of the consequences of “playing with nature†and making genetically modified foods more questionable. In 2009, the area under cultivation of GM crops in Europe has also been reduced by one tenth.
On March 2 last year, the European Commission approved a planting project for genetically modified potatoes. It also agreed that genetically modified corn can be traded on the market but it is not allowed to plant it. This is the first time in 12 years that the EU has approved GMO crops. Prior to this, only MON810 GM maize developed by Monsanto was allowed to grow in Europe.
Asia, Africa, and Latin America: Intensive Investment
In recent years, Asian countries such as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Indonesia and Vietnam have all invested heavily in research and development of biotechnology and promote the commercialization of transgenic crops.
According to reports, India spends 500 million U.S. dollars per year on crop biotechnology research. Nowadays, 87% of cotton in India is transgenic insect-resistant cotton. The annual production volume has rapidly increased from 1.58 million bundles in 2001 to 30.25 million bundles. In South America, Brazil is currently the world’s second largest grower of genetically modified crops.
Africa is not inferior. Nowadays, many African countries have also begun to develop genetically modified projects, including water-saving maize, genetically modified sorghum, bananas, transgenic cowpea, sweet potato and so on.
Genetically modified food concept
Genetically Modified Foods (GMF) is the use of modern molecular biology technology to transfer genes of certain organisms to other species to transform the genetic material of organisms to make them available to people in terms of shape, nutritional quality, and consumer quality. Needed goals change. Foods that are processed or produced by using genetically modified organisms as direct food or raw materials are "genetically modified foods."
Supervision
EU: Implement strict supervision and control
In order to promote the development of the GM food industry, the United States has implemented a relatively liberal regulatory legal system. The government can only adopt control measures on food when reliable scientific evidence proves that the risk does exist and may cause damage.
U.S. GM food regulatory agencies include the Ministry of Agriculture, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Food and Drug Administration. The production of any kind of GM food must be reviewed by one or more of the above three institutions. The most critical of these is the Food and Drug Administration, which is responsible for ensuring that genetically modified foods are safe for humans and animals.
Europeans are more vigilant about the possible negative effects of GM technology, coupled with the EU’s unprofitable international trade in GM products, and the fact that GM foods will also affect the sale of non-GM agricultural products in the EU. Therefore, the European Union imposes strict regulations on the GM food market. Supervision and control emphasizes the maintenance of consumers’ right to know and protects consumers' right to choose freely.
The EU believes that the acquisition of scientific data for genetically modified foods needs a long process, and the research conclusions still have many uncertainties. Therefore, under the guidance of the "precautionary principle", the EU has formulated a strict legal system for the supervision of genetically modified foods to ensure the safety of consumers.
EU: Mandatory labeling of genetically modified foods
In order to ensure consumers' right to know and choose, GM foods that are easy to put on the market can be traced in various stages. The EU also has extremely high requirements for the formality of the labeling of GM foods. The logo should be clearly legible and legible; the logo should be marked in the “food ingredients†column or clearly marked on the logo.
In addition, countries such as Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Norway, Poland, Australia, Indonesia, and Saudi Arabia require the implementation of a mandatory mark system for genetically modified foods.
U.S. genetically modified foods are voluntarily labelled by manufacturers. However, if a genetic crop is to be put into production in the United States, it will also need to undergo three audits simultaneously. Canada's regulatory and labeling requirements for genetically modified foods are similar to those in the United States.
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Transgenic corn reduces fertility
Austrian researchers found in 2008 that long-term consumption of MON810 transgenic corn may affect the fertility of mice. Studies have shown that the fertility of experimental mice that have long consumed this type of corn has decreased, and the offspring have light weight and weak constitution.
The relevant research of the Austrian Ministry of Health and Food Safety was commissioned by the Austrian Ministry of Health and implemented by the Vienna University of Veterinary Medicine. The study aimed to explore whether long-term consumption of genetically modified corn feed would have an effect on rats.
The researchers divided the rats into two groups, one group fed with feed supplemented with MON810 transgenic corn and the other with feed supplemented with native Austrian corn. After 20 weeks, the researchers found that there were differences in the offspring produced by the two groups of rats. The number of litters in experimental mice fed with genetically modified corn was reduced, and the young rats were also lighter in weight and weaker in physique. After several generations of breeding and rearing, there have also been changes in the genitals of females that have been fed with genetically modified corn.
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