Bt Cotton companies encourage farmers to sell unapproved BOLLGARD II: MEC urges GEAC to act now
PRESS RELEASE

10th January 2006, New Delhi: The Monitoring and Evaluation Committee (MEC) today revealed hard hitting evidence of blatant biosafety violations in field trials of Bollgard II in Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu , Maharashtra and Punjab.

This report points out once again to the same kind of irregularities that were witnessed when Bollgard I was sought to be introduced in India. The MEC uncovered the same kind of secrecy, the same kind of lax (or even absence of) monitoring, the same kind of unscientificity to the trials and the same kind of violations with a total disregard to biosafety.

In July 2004, the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) approved extensive one-year trials in 80 locations each for each zone, of the stacked gene cotton hybrids containing two genes, Cry 1Ac and Cry 2 Ab (called Bollgard II). These were first approved for field trials for central and south zones. In March 2005, similar field trials were approved for the north zone also. Like in the case of Bollgard I, this technology is once again the proprietary technology obtained from Monsanto, the largest seed company in the world. Other than Mahyco, Monsanto has licensed Bollgard II to several other companies: Ajeet Seeds, Krishidhan Seeds and Rasi Seeds are currently conducting large-scale field trials.

Mr Ranchodlal Gonaji a farmer from Temariyan, Petlawad block, Jhabua district, Madhya Pradesh was one of the farmers approached by MAHYCO to test their BG II cotton. The company did not sign any agreement with the farmer. Sowing took place late. No visits were conducted to the trial plot by the company; in fact, the plot had begun wilting and the farmer approached the company quite a few times but in vain. The farmer was asked to remove the soybean existing on his plot and then sow the BGII seed supplied to him. The farmer has already sold whatever little produce he had from the plot to a local trader in Petlawad.

The MEC has documented 17 such cases from 5 states that are representative of the abysmal regulatory failure of RCGM and GEAC, the gross violations conducted by the companies as well as point out to the future fate of farmers who opt for commercial cultivation of these hybrids which would be approved based on such unscientific trials.

Snapshot of the key issues raised by the report:

* All materials from field trials, including seeds, cotton, crop residue etc., have entered (are about to enter) the regular supply chain. This is a clear violation of biosafety rules for Bollgard II. The companies are clearly flouting the rules and guidelines of the EPA.

* In cases where the farmer has incurred heavy losses and where the company refused to come and monitor the plot, there are no accountability mechanisms put in place that protect the farmers' interests.

* The trials are being conducted in an unscientific manner. In several cases the company has abandoned data when the crop starts performing poorly. Would this mean that they fabricate numbers for this plot, or that they calculate averages for approval only from those plots that the company finds promising, is a question to be explored.

There are currently 21 food crops (cereals, vegetables, pulses) are being genetically engineered in the country. Over 13 of these are currently being tested in open-air field trials in numerous unknown locations across the country. The findings presented in the MEC report raise serious questions about the biosafety of these potentially dangerous GE foods.

In the light of these findings based on information and evidence that emerged during the cotton growing season of 2005 from the states of Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab and Tamil Nadu, the Monitoring and Evaluation Committee demands:

* That all BG2 field trials be declared invalid in all states of the country.

* A ban all ongoing field trials (RCGM and GEAC) of Genetically Engineered crops in India

* That all the seed companies conducting field trials of BGII be penalised for biosafety violations and farmers compensated