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The greatest service which can be rendered any country is to add a useful plant to its culture.
Thomas Jefferson
We have large and various orchards and gardens wherein we practice all conclusions of grafting and inoculating, whereby we make trees and flowers to come earlier or later than their seasons, and their fruit greater and sweeter and of differing taste, smell, colour, and figure from their nature; and likewise to make one plant or tree turn into another.
Francis Bacon, New Atlantis
AgBioWorld Foundation, "Scientists in Support of Agricultural Biotechnology."
Declaration signed by over 3,200 scientists who support the use of biotechnology to improve agriculture in the developing world.
"We, the undersigned members of the scientific community, believe that recombinant DNA techniques constitute powerful and safe means for the modification of organisms and can contribute substantially in enhancing quality of life by improving agriculture, health care, and the environment."
AfricaBio, Position on the Impact of Genetic Modification on Biosafety (August 2002).
"With all the methodologies and scientific tools available to us today, the safety of the products of biotechnology is equal or safer than conventional food products. Decisions made in the advancement of biotechnology events are science based rather than based on emotional decisions."
Read this and other AfricaBio position papers on agricultural biotechnology here.
American Council on Science and Health, Biotechnology and Food (2000).
"Current regulatory scrutiny, plus the excellent track record of GM food safety, gives us confidence that GM foods are rigorously scrutinized and that the technology is safe. Consumers and farmers can expect a wide variety of beneficial new products in the not-too-distant future to augment those currently on the market."
American Dietetic Association, Biotechnology and the Future of Food-Position of ADA (reaffirmed 2000).
"It is the position of The American Dietetic Association that biotechnology techniques have the potential to be useful in enhancing the quality, nutritional value, and variety of food available for human consumption and in increasing the efficiency of food production, food processing, food distribution, and waste management."
American Medical Association Council on Scientific Affairs, Genetically Modified Crops and Foods (I-00) Full Text (2000).
"The AMA believes that as of December 2000, there is no scientific justification for special labeling of genetically modified foods, as a class, and that voluntary labeling is without value unless it is accompanied by focused consumer education. . . . The AMA recognizes the many potential benefits offered by genetically modified crops and foods, does not support a moratorium on planting genetically-modified crops, and encourages ongoing research developments in food biotechnology."
American Phytopathological Society, Statement on Biotechnology andIits Application to Plant Pathology (August 2001).
"The approved statement acknowledges the many benefits of using biotechnology for plant pathogen and plant research and for disease management. It also expresses support for responsible and science-based oversight and regulation of biotechnology. Further, it calls for placing consideration of risks associated with managing plant diseases through biotechnology in perspective with other disease management approaches, including social, economic, and environmental issues and concerns."
American Seed Trade Association, ASTA Position Statement on Genetically Modified Plant Varieties.
"ASTA strongly supports the safe use of new modern genetic methods in the continuing effort to improve crop varieties. The safety of crops modified by modern biotechnology is ensured through a most rigorous and comprehensive set of regulatory systems. The resulting varieties hold great promise for improving the food and feed supply of the world and promoting environmental sustainability, just as past accomplishments of plant breeders have benefited the world."
American Society for Cell Biology, Statement in Support of Research on Genetically Modified Organisms.
"The ASCB vigorously supports research and development in the area of genetically engineered organisms, including the development of genetically modified (GM) crop plants. . . . New products from genetically modified crops promise significant improvement in human health and the environment."
American Society for Microbiology, Statement of the American Society for Microbiology on Genetically Modified Organisms (2000).
"Since biotechnology enables well characterized genes to be transferred from one organism to another with greater precision and predictability than is possible using traditional breeding procedures, the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) is sufficiently convinced to assure the public that plant varieties and products created with biotechnology have the potential of improved nutrition, better taste and longer shelf-life."
American Society of Plant Biologists, Statement on Genetic Modification of Plants Using Biotechnology.
"The ASPB believes strongly that, with continued responsible regulation and oversight, biotechnology will bring many significant health and environmental benefits to the world and its people."
Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE), Market Access Issues for GM Products, July 2003
"There is no strong evidence to suggest that GM grains ... are not finding markets through the world. GM producing countries already dominate the world grain trade ... [and] there is limited evidence of willingness of consumers to pay higher prices for products that are certified to not contain GM materials."
Dr. Norman E. Borlaug (Nobel Prize Laureate for Peace 1970). 2000. Ending world hunger. The promise of biotechnology and the threat of antiscience zealotry. Plant Physiology 124: 487-490.
"The affluent nations can afford to adopt elitist positions and pay more for food produced by the so-called natural methods; the 1 billion chronically poor and hungry people of this world cannot. New technology will be their salvation, freeing them from obsolete, low-yielding, and more costly production technology."
California Council on Science and Technology, Benefits and Risks of Food Biotechnology (July 2002).
"Agricultural biotechnology of the last two decades has shown promising benefits for increasing food and fiber production for a burgeoning world population, reducing pesticide pollution, improving food quality, and providing new pharmaceuticals and bio-fuels for the future."
Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), Agricultural Biotechnology and the Poor Report, Section One, "Agricultural Biotechnology and the Poor: Promethean Science," by G.J. Persley (2000).
"[M]olecular biology and other tools of modern biotechnology add elegance and precision to the pursuit of solutions to thwart poverty, malnutrition and food insecurity in too many countries around the world. In agriculture these enemies are manifest as pests, diseases, drought and other biotic and abiotic stresses that limit the productivity of plants and animals."
Read other sections of the report here.
Council for Agricultural Science and Technology, Position Statement on Food and Agricultural Biotechnology (2000).
"Advances in biotechnology and its application to food production and agricultural practices can contribute to quality of life by improving food security, health care, and the environment."
Crop Science Society of America, CSSA Perspective on Biotechnology (August 2001).
"Agricultural production has profound effects by transforming our environment, human health, the economy, and human culture. The Crop Science Society of America supports education and research in all aspects of crop production, including the judicious application of biotechnology."
Federation of Animal Scientific Societies (representing the American Dairy Science Association, the American Society of Animal Science, and the Poultry Science Association), FASS Facts On Biotech Crops - Impact on Meat, Milk and Eggs (2001).
"Meat, milk and eggs from animals fed biotech feeds are safe for human consumption."
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Statement on Biotechnology (March 2000).
"Biotechnology provides powerful tools for the sustainable development of agriculture, fisheries and forestry, as well as the food industry. When appropriately integrated with other technologies for the production of food, agricultural products and services, biotechnology can be of significant assistance in meeting the needs of an expanding and increasingly urbanized population in the next millennium."
Genetics Society of America, Statement on Genetically Modified Organisms.
"As of 2000, 53% of the US soybean crop, 65% of the corn crop, and 80% of rennet cheese was genetically modified. As of this writing, we are not aware of any confirmed illnesses or other harmful effects resulting from genetically modified foods."
GM Science Review Panel, United Kingdom (July 2003)
This independent review, requested by British Agriculture Secretary Margaret Beckett, found that there is no scientific evidence for ruling out all biotech crops and their products. Additionally, the review found that worldwide there have been no verifiable ill effects reported from the extensive consumption of products improved through biotechnology by humans and livestock.
Institute of Food Science and Technology, Position Statement, Genetic Modification and Food (1999).
"Genetic modification (GM) has the potential to offer very significant improvements in the quantity, quality and acceptability of the world's food supply."
Institute of Food Technologists, Expert Report on Biotechnology and Foods (2000).
"The use of rDNA biotechnology and molecular techniques of genetic manipulation significantly broadens the scope of the genetic changes that can be made in food organisms and broadens the scope of possible sources of foods, but this does not inherently lead to foods that are less safe than those developed by conventional techniques. By virtue of their greater precision, such products can be expected to be better characterized, leading to more predictability and a more reliable safety assessment process."
Institute of Food Technologists, American Institute of Biological Science, American Phytopathological Society, American Society for Horticulture Science, American Society for Microbiology, American Society of Agronomy, American Society of Plant Physiologists, Crop Science Society of America, Entomological Society of America, Society of Nematologists, and Weed Society of America, Appropriate Oversight of Plants with Inherited Traits for Resistance to Pests (1996).
"[T]he new tools of recombinant DNA technology as an aid to plant variety development are more likely to increase the safety rather than the risk of new varieties of crop plants to people and the environment."
International Association of Plant Breeders (ASSINSEL), Position Paper on Genetically Enhanced Plant Varieties for Food and Feed Uses (May 31, 2001).
"ASSINSEL supports the use of gene transfer in the continuing effort to improve plant varieties. The safety of genetically enhanced plant varieties is ensured through a most rigorous and comprehensive set of regulatory systems. The resulting genetically enhanced plant varieties hold great promise for improving the food and feed supply of the world and promoting environmental sustainability, just as past accomplishments of plant breeders have benefited the world."
International Society of African Scientists, Position Statement adopted at a technical conference held on October 5, 2001, Potential Benefits of Biotechnology to Agriculture in Africa and the Caribbean (2001).
"The International Society of African Scientists (ISAS) believes that agricultural biotechnology represents a major opportunity to enhance the production of food crops, cash crops, and other agricultural commodities in Africa, the Caribbean and other developing nations."
John Innes Centre (UK), JIC Position Statement on Genetic Modification.
"JIC expects, based on its unique historic perspective and the present state of scientific knowledge, that appropriate application of genetic modification has the potential to provide significant benefit to society in many areas of the life sciences."
National Academy of Science and Technology of the Republic of the Philippines, Filipino Scientists in Support of Biotechnology, Statement endorsed by over 400 scientists from the Philippines (2000).
"We, at the National Academy of Science and Technology-the advisory and recognition body of the government of the Republic of the Philippines on science and technology-and the scientists-undersigned believe and support the application of modern biotechnology as a tool to enhance agricultural productivity; to feed and improve the lives of the fast-growing population; and to address environmental degradation, hunger, and poverty."
National Academies, National Research Council, Environmental Effects of Transgenic Plants: The Scope and Adequacy of Regulation (2002).
"[T]he committee finds that the transgenic process presents no new category of risk compared to conventional methods of crop improvement but that specific traits introduced by both approaches can pose unique risks. There is currently no formal environmental regulation of most conventionally improved crops, so it is clear that the standards being set for transgenic crops are much higher than for their conventional counterparts."
National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council, Genetically Modified Pest-Protected Plants: Science and Regulation (2000).
"The committee is not aware of any evidence that foods on the market are unsafe to eat as a result of genetic modification."
National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council, Field-Testing of Genetically Modified Organisms: Framework for Decisions (1989).
"Crops modified by molecular and cellular methods should pose risks no different from those modified by classical genetic methods for similar traits. As the molecular methods are more specific, users of these methods will be more certain about the traits they introduce into the plants."
National Academy of Sciences, Introduction of Recombinant DNA-Engineered Organisms into the Environment (1987).
"There is no evidence that unique hazards exist either in the use of r-DNA techniques or in transfer of genes between unrelated organisms. The risks associated with the introduction of r-DNA organisms are the same in kind as those associated with the introduction in the environment of unmodified organisms and organisms modified by other genetic techniques."
National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, Policy Statement, Biotechnology: A Key to Agriculture's Future (September 25, 2001).
"Potential benefits to the world from future discoveries in biotechnology are almost too vast to comprehend. The products derived from rDNA technology can significantly enhance our quality of life from the medicines we use, to the food we eat, to the environment in which we live."
New Zealand Royal Commission, Report of the New Zealand Royal Commission on Genetic Modification (2001).
"Genetic modification has been used freely in New Zealand for more than a decade as a research tool, for medical purposes, and in food ingredients. It holds exciting promise, not only for conquering diseases, eliminating pests and contributing to the knowledge economy, but for enhancing the international competitiveness of the primary industries so important to our country's economic well-being."
Nuffield Council on Bioethics (U.K.), Genetically Modified Crops: The Ethical and Social Issues (May 1999).
"The scope of improvements offered by genetic modification in the future is much wider and consumer benefits much more evident. However, concentrating exclusively on the safety and environmental impact of GM crops in the UK and Europe may distract both the public and governments from giving proper attention to the benefits they could bring to developing and developed countries."
Pontifical Academy of Sciences, Science and the Future of Mankind: Science for Man and Man for Science, "Study Document on the Use of 'Genetically Modified Food Plants' to Combat Hunger in the World" by Nicola Cabibbo (2001).
"Contrary to common perception, there is nothing intrinsic to the genetic modification of plants that causes products derived from them to be unsafe. The products of gene alteration, just like the products of any modification, need to be considered in their own right and individually tested to see if they are safe or not. "
Royal Society, Genetically Modified Plants for Food Use and Human Health-An Update (February 2002).
"There is at present no evidence that GM foods cause allergic reactions. The allergenic risks posed by GM plants are in principle no greater than those posed by conventionally derived crops or by plants introduced from other areas of the world."
Royal Society, Genetically Modified Plants for Food Use (September 1998).
"The use of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) has the potential to offer real benefits in agricultural practice, food quality, nutrition and health. There are, however, uncertainties about several aspects of GMOs. Continued research, funded in part from public sources with the results made openly available, is essential if these uncertainties are to be properly addressed, the risks understood and the full potential of the new technology made clear."
Royal Society of London, U.S. National Academy of Sciences, Brazilian Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Indian National Science Academy, Mexican Academy of Sciences, and Third World Academy of Sciences, Transgenic Plants and World Agriculture (2000).
"Foods can be produced through the use of GM technology that are more nutritious, stable in storage and in principle, health promoting-bringing benefits to consumers in both industrialized and developing nations. . . . GM technology, coupled with important developments in other areas, should be used to increase the production of main food staples, improve the efficiency of production, reduce the environmental impact of agriculture, and provide access to food for small-scale farmers."
U.S. Representative Nick Smith, Committee on Science Subcommittee on Basic Research, U.S. House of Representatives, Chairman's Report, Seeds of Opportunity: An Assessment of the Benefits, Safety and Oversight of Plant Genomics and Agricultural Biotechnology (April 13, 2000).
"There is no evidence that transferring genes from unrelated organisms to plants poses unique risks. The risks associated with plant varieties developed using agricultural biotechnology are the same as those for similar varieties developed using classical breeding methods. As the new methods are more precise and allow for better characterization of the changes being made, plant developers and food producers are in a better position to assess safety than when using classical breeding methods."
Society for In Vitro Biology, Position Statement on Crop Genetic Engineering (2000).
"The membership of the Society for In Vitro Biology believes that the commercialization of genetically engineered (GE) crops will have a dramatic and positive impact on people the world over. We believe the current oversight of these crops by the federal regulatory agencies (FDA, USDA, EPA) is adequate and that these crops are as safe, if not safer, than traditionally bred crops."
Society of Toxicology Position Paper, The Safety of Foods Produced Through Biotechnology (2002).
"There is no reason to suppose that the process of food production through biotechnology leads to risks of a different nature than those already familiar to toxicologists or that cannot also be created by conventional breeding practices for plant, animal or microbial improvement. It is therefore important to recognize that it is the food product itself, rather than the process through which it is made, that should be the focus of attention in assessing safety."
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