HEALTH-ROMANIA: Worries Rise over GM Crops

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Marian Chiriac

BUCHAREST, May 29 2003 (IPS) - Romanian groups have started to warn consumers of health dangers as evidence emerges of growing cultivation of genetically engineered crops.

"Romania appears to be encouraging the use of genetically engineered crops, mainly soybean and potatoes," says Iza Krusewska from ANPED, an umbrella organisation representing many local and international green movements. The group recently produced a report on the possible harmful effects of GM (genetically modified) products.

"In recent years, millions of Romanians have been eating genetically modified ingredients every day without realising it," Krusewska told IPS. "This is very dangerous. The country could become a cheap unregulated testing ground for companies unable to conduct similar experiments at home."

A senior official from the Agriculture Ministry admitted that Romania had been importing GM soybean for the past 13 years, and that this had been used to produce edible oil.

Also, a modified strain of soybean was planted over about 30,000 hectares only last year, says Elena Badea, chairman of the Committee on Food Security at the Agriculture Ministry. Beetle-resistant potatoes and GM tomatoes were also harvested.

"But none of these genetically engineered crops represent a danger to people here," Badea told IPS. "On the contrary, there is a special interest in the matter as current fields are taken over by weeds, and strongly infested with beetles. The cultivation of resistant varieties would allow us to combat these pests efficiently."

Some ecologists say GM organisms may have unpredictable consequences once they are released. Frost is among the greatest dangers to the potato crop, and there are fears that if a resistant crop is created and introduced, weeds may also learn to withstand the freezing temperatures.

But there are no independent studies here yet of the effects GM food may have on health and the environment.

The EU (European Union) stopped processing new applications for GM crops four years ago. It has launched an internal assessment of the health and environmental impact of GM foods.

U.S. farmers and exporters who dominate world trade in GM crops were the worst hit by the EU decision. The U.S. made strong protests, but did not press its case in the face of strong public opposition to GM crops.

"The dispute has strong political dimensions," Cristina Parau from the London School of Economics and Political Science told IPS. "The fact that we don’t see GM crops grown all over the place in the European Union has a lot to do with pressure from environmental NGOs, organic farmers and the wider public. The level of this pressure has been too great to be ignored by EU member states governments."

Parau says public opposition to GM food in western Europe is rooted in the BSE crisis (mad cow disease) in the mid-nineties in which diseases among cattle fed GM food were passed on to people. That disease has undermined public trust in politicians, regulatory agencies and scientists, Parau says.

Romania, which is set to join the EU by 2007 adopted its first measures only last year to regulate GM products. It asked manufacturers of GM products to declare it on their labels.

"The law is perfect on paper but its results have yet to be seen," says journalist Cristina Liberis who writes on consumer affairs. "The problem is that Romania lacks a culture of consumer awareness."

Consumer groups agree that they have been unable to persuade people of the risks of genetically engineered products. Customers often laugh off the question when asked if they are worried. "If we avoided eating anything that is bad, we’d die of starvation," said a shopper at a store.