Philippines S&T Academy Supports Modern Biotechnology

President of the Philippine National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) Dr. Emil Q. Javier, emphasized the need to "intensify" and "modernize" agriculture for the growing population and demand for food. "Whatever technology that is proven to be safe and can help us raise productivity, without destroying the environment, such as the Bt eggplant technology, should be welcomed," he said. This stand was expressed during his opening message in the "Seminar on Benefits and Impact of Promising Public Sector Crop Biotechnology" held September 27, 2010. This Seminar was co-organized by NAST and the Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) through its Biotechnology Information Center (BIC).

Dr. Kailash Bansal, of the National Research Centre on Plant Biotechnology of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, affirmed the safety of the Bt eggplant upon presenting the various tests, such as allergenicity and toxicity, conducted by the Indian technology developer, Mahyco. The tests which were undertaken for several years were based on the international standards set by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), in ensuring the food safety of the products developed through modern biotechnology prior to commercial deployment. He also reiterated that the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee of India has already recommended for the commercial release of the genetically modified Bt eggplant, based on their safety assessment. Dr. Bansal also shared the recent statement of the highly regarded Six Academies of India endorsing the safety of Bt brinjal and recommending the commercial approval of this biotech product in India.

A profitability study of eggplant farms in Luzon by Dr. Cesar Quicoy of the College of Economics and Management, University of the Philippines Los Baños, discussed the results of his study that eggplant farmers in the top three eggplant-producing provinces (Pangasinan, Batangas, and Quezon) allot more than half of their total production cost per hectare to pesticides and labor for pest control. Most of them were also found to be resource-poor, high school graduates; they have an average farm holding of 0.7 hectare. Dr. Quicoy stated that the Bt eggplant, which would greatly reduce the need for pesticide use due to the inherent resistance to the number pest, fruit and shoot borer, can be one of the profitable solution to this problem.

For more information on this seminar and on biotech updates in the Philippines, visit http://www.bic.searca.org/ or send an email to bic@agri.searca.org