A range of options exists to enhance the regulatory review process to address new challenges future products of agricultural biotechnology are likely to present, although opinions vary about the need for change, according to Issues in the Regulation of Genetically Engineered Plants and Animals, a report by the Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology.
Over the last quarter century, the rapid development of modern biotechnology (see Figure 1.1) has led to the creation of new varieties of plants and animals containing novel traits that would be difficult or impossible to achieve through traditional breeding. Biotechnology is a powerful tool that has the potential to deliver many benefits. Products have been developed or are being developed that can improve the agronomic performance of food crops (such as delivering higher yields or increased disease resistance), provide new consumer benefits (such as healthier oils and vegetables with longer shelf lives), provide new ways to make valuable industrial and pharmaceutical chemicals in plants and animals, and deliver environmental benefits (such as a reduction in the use of pesticides). Regarding fish and livestock, biotechnology has the potential to improve animal health, reduce the costs of production, and improve the quality of food derived from these animals.
Scientific reviews have generally found that the risks posed by biotechnology products do not differ in kind from the risks posed by their conventionally produced counterparts (GAO 2002; NRC 1987). In some ways, genetic engineering is more precise than conventional breeding, because scientists know what genetic material is being introduced and generally understand the functions of the expressed proteins. However, genetic engineering greatly expands the range of genetic material available for modifying plants and animals. Genetic engineering can introduce substances into food that have never been in the food supply before, and can give plants and animals new traits that have not previously been introduced into specific environments.
Concerns have therefore been raised about the potential of genetic engineering to introduce new toxins and allergens into food and to reduce essential nutrients (FDA 1992). Concerns have also been raised about potential adverse effects on the environment from the introduction of novel genetic traits, which could inadvertently be passed on to related wild plants or animals, reducing biological diversity and disrupting ecological systems (NRC 2002b). Plants that have been engineered to express substances to repel pests have raised concerns due to their possible impact on organisms other than the targeted plant pests and the possibility that the pests may become resistant to the pesticidal substances over time (NRC 2000).
The question of how best to regulate genetically engineered (GE) food and other products of agricultural biotechnology has been debated for nearly as long as the technology has existed. Since 1986, biotechnology products have been regulated under a Coordinated Framework of laws administered primarily by three agencies—the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).1 The central premise of the Coordinated Framework was that the process of biotechnology itself poses no unique risks and that products engineered by biotechnology should therefore be regulated under the same laws as conventionally produced products with similar compositions and intended uses. A second and no less important conclusion was that existing laws were adequate to meet regulatory needs.
Under the Coordinated Framework and related agency regulations, the first generation of genetically engineered crops has been introduced and commercialized. Today, a significant percentage of the corn, cotton, and soybeans in the United States is grown from genetically engineered varieties.2 For the most part, this first generation of agricultural biotechnology products consists of single-gene, single-trait modifications made for agronomic purposes, primarily to make crops pest resistant or herbicide tolerant. The adequacy of the Coordinated Framework has been a matter of disagreement from the beginning. Some have criticized the regulatory system in general (McGarity and Hansen 2001; Alliance for Bio-Integrity et al. v. Shalala, 116 F. Supp.2d 166 (D.D.C. 2000); Hansen 1999; Hopkins, Goldburg, and Hirsch 1991; Krimsky et al. 1989). Specific risk assessments and product approvals made by the agencies have also been the subject of criticism (NRC 2000, 120-125; UCS 1994). Others have argued that the regulatory system has worked well; they point to the absence of any evident food safety or environmental problems (NRC 2002b; Chassy et al. 2001; NRC 2000; Smith 2000) and the general scientific consensus that GE products are no riskier than their conventionally produced counterparts. Still others have argued that GE foods are over-regulated under the Coordinated Framework and should be afforded no greater review than conventional foods (Miller and Conko 2003).
The introduction of the first generation of GE crops did not occur without controversy. In Europe, the food safety crisis caused by “mad cow disease,” while unrelated to GE food, raised broad concerns among EU consumers about the safety of the food supply and the competence of government regulators, contributing to widespread consumer wariness about GE food (Pringle 2003, 103). The resulting rejection of GE crops and market demand for non-GE varieties has become a major challenge for farmers, grain processors, grain shippers, food manufacturers, and others in industry (Shadid 2001; Shoemaker et al. 2001). Incidents in the United States have also illustrated the challenge of managing GE crops. In 2000, traces of StarLink, a GE variety of corn not approved for food use, were discovered in numerous food products. While the highly publicized incident caused no documented harm to human health, product recalls and trade disruptions cost industry hundreds of millions
of dollars (Lueck 2000).
Today, biotechnology developers are poised to bring the next generation of agricultural biotechnology products to market (Monsanto 2003; PIFB 2001). (See Figure 1.2) While some new crop varieties will continue to deliver benefits primarily to farmers in the form of increased pest resistance or herbicide tolerance, others will represent a significant departure from the first generation. The next generation of GE crop varieties will likely include a wider range of desirable agronomic traits, including drought tolerance. Food crops may be modified with traits to improve freshness, taste, and nutrition. Plants could also be modified for nonfood purposes, such as the manufacture of pharmaceutical or industrial chemicals.
The next generation of agricultural biotechnology also includes animals. In some cases, transgenic animals could be modified to include traits that improve the production offood; examples include faster-growing fish and disease-resistant cattle. In other cases, animals will be modified to produce industrial or pharmaceutical products, and even to grow organs for human transplantation. Many of these genetic modifications will be substantially more complex than the singlegene, single-trait modifications of the first generation of GE crops. The new products are expected to enter into the regulatory review process in the next two to ten years and could pose novel issues for the regulatory agencies.
When the federal agencies first proposed the Coordinated Framework nearly 20 years ago, they acknowledged the need to periodically reassess the regulatory system to ensure that it is keeping pace with the rapid development of the technology (OSTP 1984).3 The impending introduction of the next generation of agricultural biotechnology products has led to a renewed interest in examining the adequacy of the current regulatory system for such future products.
In evaluating the adequacy of a regulatory system, the purposes of the system must initially be considered. The primary purpose of any regulatory system is to protect againstharm by assessing and managing the risks of potentially harmful products and activities. At the same time, a regulatory system should provide a clear pathway to the market for safe and useful products. Over the years, Congress has passed numerous laws to ensure the safety of food, drugs, pesticides, chemicals, and other substances that could pose risks to health or the environment. While the primary goal of a regulatory system is to prevent harm, the public trust generated by an effective and credible regulatory system also has considerable importance for commerce. Regulation can provide assurance to consumers that they can rely upon the agency’s independent expertise and purchase products without concern. These commercial benefits can be lost, however, if consumers lack confidence in the integrity and competence of the regulatory system. For this reason, many interested parties, including the biotechnology industry, have consistently acknowledged the importance that a credible, rigorous regulatory system has in ensuring the market acceptance of its products.4
Read Full Section: Introduction (PDF)
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Personal Communications Cited
James V. Aidala, former Assistant Administrator, Office of Prevention, Pesticides, and Toxic Substances, Environmental Protection Agency. September 16, 2003.
Thomas Bundy, Deputy Assistant General Counsel (Retired), Regulatory Division, Office of General Counsel, U.S. Department of Agriculture. November 30, 2003.
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More info"Being a Minnesotan, Jeff Almer searched for a polite term to describe how he feels about a congressional push to roll back the new food safety laws his family fought for when his elderly mother died after eating salmonella-laced peanut butter in late 2008."
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More infoCDC Data Show Alarmingly High Rate of Listeria Infections for Expectant MomsFrom 2004 2009, 29 percent of cases during pregnancy ended in miscarriage, stillbirth or neonatal death Data collected by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Foodborne
More info"The Food and Drug Administration will not reduce food inspections because of budget cuts, despite warning earlier that it could be forced to eliminate thousands of inspections by Sept. 30."
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