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The
Government has given the go-ahead for the first commercial planting
of genetically modified crops in Britain.
Ministers have given qualified approval to the growing of one variety
of GM maize for animal feed after a series of trials.
But they have rejected the growing of GM beet or oil-seed rape.
The Environment Secretary Margaret Beckett told the Commons there
would be strict conditions to ensure there was no damage to the
environment, while further scientific analysis takes place.
The announcement will trigger vehement protest from anti-GM campaigners,
and relief from the biotechnology industry. But legal challenges
and unanswered scientific questions still lie ahead.
South Devon farmer Guy Watson, who lost a legal challenge to a GM
trial near his organic farm, has predicted widespread contamination
of conventional crops.
"The issue now is very different because we are not talking about
tiny areas of trial crops," he said.
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| Organic
farmer Guy Watson is concerned about the decision. |
"We
are talking about the possibility of quite large areas of GM maize
being grown, particularly throughout the West Country because that
is where most maize is grown, which I think would really make it
impossible to grow a crop of sweetcorn or maize that would not be
contaminated to a significant level."
Mr Watson added: "In the States, roughly 50% of supposedly non-GM
maize is found to be contaminated to significant levels with GM
crops.
"You imagine that in the state of Idaho or something where the fields
are huge and compare that to the situation in Devon where we have
very small fields, a very mixed system of agriculture, where there
are going to be a lot of boundaries between GM and non-GM maize.
"The level of contamination is just bound to be a lot higher than
the levels in the States which are already very significant."
Margaret Beckett told MPs the government would oppose the growing
anywhere in the European Union of the two other GM crops, beet and
oilseed rape, involved in the recent tests.
She said the GM maize licences would expire in October 2006, and
anyone wishing to renew them would have to carry out scientific
analysis during cultivation.
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| Arguments
remain over the use of GM crops. Photo courtesy Monsanto |
Mrs
Beckett said there was no scientific case for a blanket approval
for all uses of GM, but neither was there a scientific case for
a blanket ban on the use of GM.
However before any variety can be placed on the UK's approved seed
list, the devolved authorities in Scotland and Wales must agree
with the UK government in Westminster that this should happen.
Neither is yet certain to give their agreement: the Welsh Assembly
voted unanimously in 2000 to keep Wales GM-free.
The Soil Association, which has fought GM crops from the beginning,
said it was fearful that if something went wrong, perhaps in 10
to 15 years, it would be "impossible to reverse".
Conservative MP John Whittingdale warned that despite the Government's
decision, more than 40 regions in Britain wanted to declare themselves
GM-free, including Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and the Lake District.
He asked whether the Government will be providing advice to these
authorities on the establishment of voluntary GM-free zones.
Even if Scotland and Wales do agree to support a decision to let
the maize be grown, that will not necessarily be the end of the
government's problems.
There will still be an opportunity for objectors to appeal against
the decision. That could mean a hearing lasting several months and
the earliest possible date the maize could be planted is in early
2005.
Tony Juniper, director of Friends of the Earth, said the Government
had given the thumbs-up to GM maize and shown two fingers to the
British public.
"In demonstrating its pro-GM credentials, the Government has ignored
considerable scientific uncertainties, shown contempt to Parliament
and utterly disregarded public opinion," said Mr Juniper.
"Moreover, this crop will be fed to cows to make milk that will
not be labelled as GM, thereby making a mockery of official claims
that policy will preserve consumer choice.
"We will now fight that all the way - through the remaining official
approval stages and through the market."
Bob Fiddaman, spokesman for Scimac, a group of industry organisations
that support GM crops, said the technology did not carry risk.
"Never has a form of technology been so tested and checked by scientists
before it has been allowed to be fully developed," he said.
"There is nothing wrong per se with genetic technology because you're
only moving genes within species."
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