1.Unapproved, Genetically Engineered Wheat Found in Oregon Farmer's Field
2.Monsanto Modified Wheat Not Approved by USDA Found in Field
3.USDA says unapproved genetically engineered wheat discovered in Oregon field
EXTRACT: Oregon Department of Agriculture Director Katy Coba said in a statement that the discovery is “a very serious development that could have major trade ramifications.” The state exports about 90 percent of its wheat. (item 3)
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1.Unapproved, Genetically Engineered Wheat Found in Oregon Farmer's Field
Center for Food Safety, May 29 2013
http://www.centerforfoodsafety.org/press-releases/2253
*Citing Past Contamination and Losses to Farmers, Center for Food Safety Calls for Moratorium on Genetically Engineered Crop Field Trials
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced that unapproved, genetically engineered (GE) wheat was found contaminating an Oregon farmer’s field. The GE wheat, known as Roundup Ready, was developed by the Monsanto Company to withstand direct application of Roundup (glyphosate) herbicide.
“USDA has once again failed to protect the food supply from GE crop contamination,” said Andrew Kimbrell, executive director at Center for Food Safety. “This incident underscores why stronger regulation is long overdue. Congress needs to investigate how this occurred and the prevalence of contamination. Until then, USDA, at a minimum, should immediately place a moratorium on open-air field testing of genetically engineered crops.”
After a decade of field trials, Monsanto dropped efforts to introduce the GE wheat in 2004 in the face of intense international opposition from consumers, farmers, wheat millers, and food companies. However, after a six-year hiatus, Monsanto once again began extensive field-testing of GE wheat in 2011.
Opponents of GE wheat have long argued that it would contaminate conventional wheat, making it unsellable to many markets that reject GE products. A 2005 study estimated that the wheat industry could lose $94 to $272 million if GE wheat were introduced. Past transgenic contamination episodes involving GE corn and GE rice have triggered over $1 billion in losses and economic hardship to farmers.
In late 2005, the USDA’s own Inspector General issued a scathing report detailing numerous violations of agency rules in regulating genetically engineered crop field trials. USDA officials did not know the locations of many field trials it was charged with regulating, and did not conduct required inspections of others.In 2002, the National Academy of Sciences also criticized serious deficiencies in USDA’s regulation of genetically engineered crops.
USDA records reveal that Monsanto has conducted 279 field tests of herbicide-resistant wheat on over 4,000 acres in 17 states since 1994.
“Our farmers and food supply are severely jeopardized by such contamination episodes, yet the biotech industry responsible faces no accountability. Moreover, the industry operates with little transparency, leaving both the public and regulators in the dark,” said Bill Freese, science policy analyst for Center for Food Safety.
Contamination from GE crops is a serious concern to wheat farmers. Farm state legislators have made several efforts to protect their states' wheat farmers should Roundup Ready wheat be introduced. In 2002, Republican State Senator Bill Bowman of North Dakota proposed legislation that would give North Dakota farmers the right to sue Monsanto if GE wheat contaminates their crop. Now, despite GE wheat’s unapproved status, such legislation is looking increasingly prescient.
In 2004, Center for Food Safety endorsed a legal petition asking the Bush Administration for a thorough analysis and public review of the social, economic and environmental impacts genetically engineered wheat. The petition argued that the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) was legally obligated by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to conduct a full environmental impact statement (EIS) on Monsanto’s then pending application to deregulate and commercially release genetically engineered wheat. Shortly after, Monsanto pulled its application.
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2.Monsanto Modified Wheat Not Approved by USDA Found in Field
Alan Bjerga
Bloomberg, May 29 2013
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-05-29/monsanto-modified-wheat-unapproved-by-usda-found-in-oregon-field.html
Genetically modified wheat created by Monsanto Co. (MON) that wasn’t approved for use turned up on an 80-acre farm in Oregon last month, threatening the outlook for U.S. exports of the grain that are the world’s largest.
A farmer attempting to kill wheat with Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide found several plants survived the weedkiller, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said today in a statement. Scientists found the wheat was a strain field-tested from 1998 to 2005 and deemed safe before St. Louis-based Monsanto, the world’s largest seedmaker, pulled Roundup Ready wheat from the regulatory approval process on concern that importers would avoid the crop.
“I would imagine even the perception that GM wheat is out there would have some impact on our exports” with so many countries “putting their foot down on not accepting” gene-altered crops, Ryan Larsen, an assistant professor of agribusiness and applied economics at North Dakota State University in Fargo, said by telephone. “This continues that bad persona that GM crops have. It allows people to say ‘See, it’s out there and we’re not being told it’s out there.’ ”
Government investigators are tracking the origin of the plants and consulting with trade partners to assure them the exposure is limited and poses no threat to human health, according to Michael Firko, acting deputy administrator at the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. No evidence exists that the never-approved wheat has entered the commercial food or feed supply, he said. Monsanto said there’s reason to believe the incident is highly isolated and should not concern consumers or trading partners.
Monsanto Statement
“There are no food, feed, or environmental safety concerns associated with the presence of the Roundup Ready gene if it is found to be present in wheat,” Monsanto said today in a statement. “Over the past decade, an annual average of 58 million acres of wheat have been planted in the U.S. This is the first report of the Roundup Ready trait being found out of place since Monsanto’s commercial development program was discontinued nine years ago.”
Monsanto halted plans to develop modified wheat in May 2004 after the Canadian Wheat Board, then the world’s largest grain seller, said its 10 biggest red spring-wheat importers, including Japan, the U.K., and Malaysia, wouldn’t accept modified varieties. Italy’s biggest miller, Grandi Molini Italiani, was among buyers in Europe and Asia that refused to import modified wheat amid consumer unease over eating such products.
Penalties
The location of the farm was not disclosed because of the nature of the investigation, the department said, adding that officials from Oregon, Washington, and Idaho along with Monsanto and trading partners were notified before today’s announcement. Criminal violations of the Plant Protection Act may include civil penalties up to $1 million.
“We are taking this very seriously,” Firko said today in a conference call with journalists. “We have a very active investigation going on in several states in the western U.S.”
U.S. Wheat Associates and the National Association of Wheat Growers, two of the industry’s biggest trade groups, said in a joint statement they are confident in the government’s investigation.
“We will cooperate with authorities in the U.S. and international markets to understand the facts surrounding this incident and help minimize its impact,” the groups said.
There are no genetically engineered wheat varieties approved for general planting in the U.S. or elsewhere, the USDA said in a statement. Mexico, Japan, and Nigeria were the three biggest buyers of U.S. wheat last year, according to the government.
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3.USDA says unapproved genetically engineered wheat discovered in Oregon field
Associated Press, May 29 2013
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/usda-says-non-approved-genetically-engineered-wheat-discovered-in-oregon-field/2013/05/29/6b140636-c892-11e2-9cd9-3b9a22a4000a_story.html
WASHINGTON — Unapproved genetically engineered wheat has been discovered in an Oregon field, a potential threat to trade with countries that have concerns about genetically modified foods.
The Agriculture Department said Wednesday that the genetically engineered wheat is safe to eat and there is no evidence that modified wheat entered the marketplace. But the department is investigating how it ended up in the field, whether there was any criminal wrongdoing and whether its growth is widespread.
“We are taking this very seriously,” said Michael Firko of the Agriculture Department’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
A farmer discovered the genetically modified plants on his farm and contacted Oregon State University, which notified USDA early this month, Firko said.
No genetically engineered wheat has been approved for U.S. farming. USDA officials said the wheat is the same strain as a genetically modified wheat that was legally tested by seed giant Monsanto a decade ago but never approved. Monsanto stopped testing that product in Oregon and several other states in 2005.
The discovery could have far-reaching implications for the U.S. wheat industry if the growth of the engineered product turns out to be far-flung. Many countries around the world will not accept imports of genetically modified foods, and the United States exports about half of its wheat crop.
Oregon Department of Agriculture Director Katy Coba said in a statement that the discovery is “a very serious development that could have major trade ramifications.” The state exports about 90 percent of its wheat.
“I am concerned that a highly regulated plant material such as genetically modified wheat somehow was able to escape into a crop field,” she said.
USDA officials declined to speculate whether the modified seeds blew into the field from a testing site or if they were somehow planted or taken there, and they would not identify the farmer or the farm’s location. The Oregon Department of Agriculture said the field is in the eastern part of the state.
The discovery also could have implications for organic companies, which by law cannot use genetically engineered ingredients in its foods. Organic farmers have frequently expressed concern that genetically modified seed will blow into organic farms and contaminate their products.
U.S. consumers have shown increasing interest in avoiding genetically modified foods. There has been little evidence to show that modified foods are less safe than their conventional counterparts, but several state legislatures are considering bills that would require them to be labeled so consumers know what they are eating.
While most of the corn and soybeans grown in the United States are already modified, the country’s wheat crop is not.
USDA said the unidentified farmer discovered the modified wheat when farm workers were trying to kill some wheat plants that popped up between harvests. The farmer used the herbicide glyphosate to kill the plants, but they did not die, prompting the tests at Oregon State to find out if the crops were genetically engineered to resist herbicides.
The tests confirmed that the plants were a strain developed by Monsanto to resist its herbicides and tested between 1998 and 2005. At the time Monsanto had applied to USDA for permission to develop the engineered wheat, but the company later pulled its application.
The Agriculture Department said that during that seven-year period, it authorized more than 100 field tests with the same glyphosate-resistant wheat variety. Tests were conducted in in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Washington, and Wyoming.
During that testing and application process, the Food and Drug Administration reviewed the variety found in Oregon and said it was as safe as conventional varieties of wheat.
Officials said they have received no other reports of discoveries of genetically modified wheat. Firko and Acting Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Michael T. Scuse said they have already been in touch with international trading partners to try and assuage any concerns.
“Hopefully our trading partners will be understanding that this is not a food or feed safety issue,” Scuse said.
Associated Press writers Nigel Duara and Tim Fought in Portland, Ore., contributed to this report.