Commentary from Greenpeace

Re: Report blasts USDA oversight of test fields

Date: Mon, 02 Jan 2006

From: Jeremy Tager Jeremy.Tager@au.greenpeace.org

To: GM WATCH Info@gmwatch.org

Subject: USDA Report

here's the URL http://www.usda.gov/oig/webdocs/50601-08-TE.pdf

Read the report yesterday and, considering it is US Government document, it is an extraordinary read! APHIS [the US Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service] doesn't know where the trial crops are - even pharma and industrial crops - because a single permit allows multiple plantings in multiple states. APHIS doesn't monitor, doesn't track disposition of trials (including pharma crops - at least 2 cases are noted of large quantities of pharma crops stored on - farm for over a year - the storage facilities never assessed. Serious violations ignored - planting of a commercial, unregulated crop in the same field as a pharma crop.

An interesting issue with this is what it suggests about contamination of US food going to other countries. This report could, I would think, be used to justify testing and certification for a variety of crops, seeds and foods coming out of the US. (Actually, they probably couldn't test because no test is required as part of the trial process and frequently the construct is commercial in confidence)

Well worth a read.