外媒：转基因水稻“在中国非法传播”

    墨西哥每日报：几年前中国就有人开始非法传播转基因大米种子。在中国，2009年底只有两种主要粮食作物的转基因品种得到了事先批准。这一情况引发了对食品安全这一敏感话题的讨论。其中一种尚未得到商业化许可的转基因品种来源于美国转基因巨头孟山都公司，但现在已经在农田中开始种植。

    1月，中国农业部还表示中国没有在严格受控的实验范围以外种植任何品种的转基因粮食。但4月底环境保护部负责人表示，根据中国四部委的联合调查，中国多地出现了非法的转基因种子，这是监管不力导致的后果。

    欧盟食品安全机构网站上显示，2006年至2011年欧盟国家曾115次发现了用来自中国的转基因大米生产的食品。

    2005年以来一起在披露中国存在转基因大米种子问题的绿色和平组织，去年在湖北、湖南、江西等中国内陆省份的市场上相继发现了转基因家作物。

    中国已经批准了一些转基因农作物的种植，如棉花和某些品种的蔬菜及水果（甜椒、西红柿各木瓜等），甚至也包括杨树。此外还为家牧业进口转基因大豆和玉米。

    但大米是个敏感话题，三分之二的中国人每天都要吃大米。5月初在一个高层研讨会上，中国知名家学专家佟屏来痛批了一些科学家拿老百姓当成实验鼠的做法。

    他指出，中国不需要转基因大米，因为大米产量足够满足需求。在2010年3月全国两会召开前，百名专家联名写信反对批准转基因主粮的种植。此外，专家们还呼吁针对转基因农作物展开公众讨论，并为转基因大米贴注标签。

附：法新社报道全文GM rice spreads, prompts debate in China

链接到法新社的全文http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5h7rQ-BdQROIKybQuBqHZs_ID_RhQ?docId=CNG.b0834d5f7f2d0a1c3d343e3121f3c2fa.f1

By Boris Cambreleng (AFP) – 6 days ago

BEIJING — Genetically modified rice has been spreading illegally for years in China, officials have admitted, triggering a debate on a sensitive aspect of the food security plan in the world's most populous nation.

Two strains of GM rice were approved for open-field experiments but not commercial sale in 2009. In January, the agriculture ministry said "no genetically modified cereals are being grown in China" outside the test sites.

But in April, an environment ministry official told the weekly Nanfang Zhoumo that a joint investigation by four government departments had found that "illegal GM seeds are present in several provinces because of weak management".

The agriculture ministry did not respond to an AFP request for clarification.

According to the website for the European Union's Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed, European countries found foodstuffs from China containing GM rice 115 times between 2006 and May this year.

The campaign group Greenpeace says GM rice seeds have been in China since 2005, and were found at markets in Hubei, Hunan and Jiangxi provinces last year, Fang Lifeng, a Chinese agriculture specialist with the group, told AFP.

Beijing is pro-biotechnology and has already allowed several GM crops to be grown, including cotton, peppers, tomatoes and papayas, and has authorised imports of GM soya and corn for the food industry.

But rice -- the key staple in the diet of the country's more than 1.3 billion people -- is a much more sensitive question.

"Two-thirds of Chinese eat rice every day," said Tong Pingya, a highly respected agronomist who blasted Chinese scientists for "treating the people like guinea pigs" at a conference in May chaired by Vice-Premier Li Keqiang.

"China does not need this genetically modified rice, as it produces enough and even exports a bit," Tong told AFP.

When the National People's Congress, China's rubber-stamp parliament, met last year, around 100 researchers wrote to deputies asking them to revoke authorisations for the use of experimental GM grains, including a strain of corn as well as the two rice types.

They also demanded a public debate and clear labelling of products containing genetically modified organisms.

Backers of GM rice argue that it is more drought-resistant, offers better yield, and -- in the case of the variety containing the Bt gene -- allows pesticide use to be dramatically cut.

"It should be possible to authorise commercialisation around 2012-2013, but the state will probably not allow them to be used on a wide scale" in the near future, said Ma Wenfeng, a grain market analyst with the consultancy CNagri, which has links to the agriculture ministry.

According to Ma, the new varieties represent "an advance in biotechnology" and will ultimately be accepted.

For their part, environmentalists and some Chinese scientists warn against the as-yet unknown long-term consequences of using GM rice for biodiversity and human health.

Whether using them is in farmers' interests is an open question, according to Greenpeace's Fang, because "GM seeds cost two to five times more than ordinary seeds" and "in terms of yield, there isn't really a difference".

GM rice strains developed in Chinese laboratories also raise questions about intellectual property.

The Bt gene is patented by the US agribusiness giant Monsanto, which could demand royalties and compensation from China if that variety is commercialised.