Ecobreves – BRAZIL: A Bid to Put Brakes on Transgenic Cotton

By IPS Correspondents and - - Reprint | | Print |

RIO DE JANEIRO, Jun 17 2006 (IPS) - The Brazilian Ministry of Environment is trying to prevent the legalization of planting Bollgard genetically modified cotton, and has asked the National Technical Commission on Biosafety to revise the authorization for its commercial cultivation, issued a year ago. The ministry argues that sufficient studies were not conducted about the impacts in the Brazilian context, where autochthonous species could be contaminated by genetic material from the transgenic crop.

The Commission restarted meetings this week, but even though the debate on this issue will intensify, it is unlikely the body will accept the request, Gabriel Fernandes, coordinator of the Campaign for a Transgenic-Free Brazil, told Tierramérica.

The cotton variety Bollgard, developed by the U.S.-based agribusiness giant Monsanto, was released under restrictions in areas where native cotton is grown. But the rules are not very effective in a country where genetically modified crops have been planted illegally, with seeds for soybeans, maize and cotton smuggled into the country.