For the safety of genetically modified food, some supporters have tried to convince the public. However, it is always questioned by opponents: If you eat it now, can you guarantee that future generations will be fine? CFP data map
Recently, CCTV advertising center stopped the advertising words of "non-GMO is safer", which triggered a heated discussion in society. Is genetically modified food safe? Some supporters try to convince the people by trying to eat, but they are always questioned by opponents: If you eat it now, can you guarantee that future generations will be fine?
Wu Kongming, an academician of China Academy of Engineering and vice president of China Academy of Agricultural Sciences, said frankly that "such a question is difficult to answer". He said that just like flying, it didn’t fall this time, and there is no guarantee that it will never fall. According to the traditional method, it is not feasible for decades and generations to make evaluations, which will "miss many opportunities for development." As for the concern about whether the promotion of genetically modified crops may lead to ecological risks, Wu Kongming told The Paper (www.thepaper.cn) that researchers would conduct risk management in advance.
On the afternoon of October 16th, 2014, the seminar on transgenic reporting for media reporters was held in Wuhan Huazhong Agricultural University. In view of some controversial transgenic issues, Wu Kongming, as an expert in the Office of Safety Management of Agricultural Genetically Modified Organisms of the Ministry of Agriculture, clarified to the media.
Genetically modified food without human testing: it is not ethical.
The safety of genetically modified food must be evaluated before it goes on the market. The common method is to feed animals such as rats. Many people question why mice are different from people, so why not do human experiments? In this regard, Wu Kongming said that it is a common practice in the international scientific community to infer the human body by zoological experiments. The reason for not doing human experiments is that people’s food is diverse, and it is difficult to exclude the interference of other food ingredients. In addition, it is not ethical to do human experiments.
Some supporters of GM often try to convince the public that GM is safe by tasting it, but opponents believe that eating nothing now does not mean that it will be okay in the future. Wu Kongming explained that the safety evaluation of genetically modified foods has taken an extraordinary amount that greatly exceeds the conventional consumption dose, and it is completely possible to calculate whether there are safety problems for people after long-term use.
Concerns about genetically modified crops come from both food safety and environmental safety. Insect-resistant transgenic crops can kill pests efficiently and are widely welcomed by farmers. But if this crop is widely promoted, will it lead to the extinction of pests? Pests are also an important link in the biological chain, and if they are extinct, they may also cause ecological disasters. Wu Kongming said that the ecological impact of genetic modification is very complicated, and the scientific research community has been paying attention to this issue, and the corresponding risk management will be done well before promotion.
Does transgenic affect fertility, cause abortion and cause tumors? Expert: It’s all rumors
Wu Kongming also clarified a number of rumors about the harm of genetic modification that have been circulating on the Internet for a long time.
In February, 2010, an article entitled "Half of the boys’ semen in Guangxi was abnormal, and it was rumored that genetically modified corn had already been planted" spread on the Internet and caused panic. According to the article, "the consumption of genetically modified corn in many places leads to the decline of male sperm vitality of college students in Guangxi, which affects their fertility", and "Guangxi and Monsanto of the United States have promoted tens of millions of mu of’ Dika’ series of genetically modified corn in Guangxi since 2001".
However, Monsanto responded that "Dika" is a hybrid corn rather than a genetically modified one; In addition, the Ministry of Agriculture has never approved the import of genetically modified food seeds into China for planting.
In September 2010, an article titled "Who Moved Their Genes? It is reported that there are fewer mice and miscarriages of sows in Shanxi, Jilin and other places … The article thinks that this is related to a corn variety "Xianyu 335" whose father is genetically modified corn.
"Xianyu 335" is a product of DuPont Company in the United States. The company subsequently issued a statement saying that the male parent and female parent of this corn are not genetically modified corn. The Ministry of Agriculture also confirmed it. The Shanxi Provincial Department of Agriculture said that "the reported animal abnormality is inconsistent with the facts".
In June 2013, the person in charge of the Soybean Association of a province in Northeast China released a report saying that Shanghai, Guangdong and other places are areas that consume more genetically modified soybean oil, and these places are also concentrated areas of tumor incidence; Heilongjiang, Liaoning, Zhejiang and other places basically do not consume genetically modified soybean oil, and at the same time, they are not concentrated areas of tumor incidence, so the cause of cancer may have great correlation with genetically modified soybean oil.
Wu Kongming said, there are many factors of tumor, such as eating habits, environmental factors, medical level, etc. all have great influence on the incidence rate, and correlation is not equal to causality. In addition, the data of different registration points in the same province are also very different. For example, the incidence of cancer per 100,000 people in Zhongshan, Guangdong Province is about 200, while that in Dalian, Liaoning Province is over 350, which is inconsistent with the original conclusion.