TWN Info Service on Biosafety
26 June 2023
Third World Network
www.twn.my
Dear Friends and Colleagues
Calls for South Africa to Set Aside Its Approval of GM Wheat
In August 2022, the South African government approved a GM wheat variety HB4 for importation as food, feed, and for the purposes of industrial food and feed processing. Nigeria, the world’s second largest wheat importer, approved the GM wheat a month earlier.
This briefing, published by the African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB), argues that the South African biosafety regulators failed in the exercise of their biosafety oversight role to implement the precautionary principle, in granting approval for the importation of GM wheat to enter the South African food system.
As pointed out in the briefing, the risk assessment by which the South African biosafety authorities approved the GM wheat lacks pertinent and crucial food safety data, assessments, and evidence. No feeding studies have been undertaken anywhere in the world regarding the GM wheat and thus it poses unacceptable risks to human and animal health, as well as undermining food sovereignty and nutrition security. There are serious concerns about contamination of the South African food supply. These concerns also extend to Botswana, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Zambia, and Namibia – countries in the region that import wheat from South Africa.
This GM wheat project has even elicited strong condemnation from 1,400 scientists from the research community. They warn that the introduction of this crop will prolong an agribusiness model that damages the environment and biodiversity, which includes blanket spraying of known toxic chemicals, while jeopardising the health of people and impacting negatively on food security.
Considering the serious concerns regarding the paltry nature of the food safety assessment conducted by the applicant, the briefing calls upon the South African authorities to review and reassess its decision and set the approval aside.
We reproduce below the Key Findings from the briefing.
With best wishes,
Third World Network
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UNSAFE GM WHEAT TO ENTER SOUTH AFRICA’S FOOD SYSTEMS
DISASTER CAPITALISM, BIOTECH INDUSTRY IN DECLINE & INSTRUMENTALISATION OF WHEAT IN AFRICA
African Centre for Biodiversity
https://acbio.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/unsafe-gm-wheat-sa-food-systems.pdf
May 2023
Key Findings
The converging multiple global crises are being exploited by a failed biotechnology industry, to promote the latest GM techno fix – GM wheat – touted as drought-tolerant and a climate change solution. Yet, complex traits such as drought tolerance in GM crop plants remain an unfulfilled promise.
The biotechnology industry has been unable in the last 25 years, to move beyond two dominant
traits: herbicide tolerance and insect resistance, both of which are now facing widespread efficacy challenges. The incursion into GM wheat is a desperate attempt at survival, by making a bid for control over lucrative wheat markets including the African region, in a classic disaster capitalist manoeuvre.
There is considerable pressure on Africa to diversify its wheat sources and lessen its dependency on Russia, thereby also decreasing the influence geopolitically that Russia has over Africa. Argentinian wheat exports have been suggested to replace much of the global demand. Noteworthy is that Nigeria, the world’s second largest wheat importer, approved the GM wheat in July 2022.
The risk assessment furnished in respect of which the South African biosafety authorities (Executive Council: GMO Act) approved the GM wheat for importation into the South African food supply lacks pertinent and crucial food safety data, assessments, and evidence. Astonishingly, no feeding studies have been undertaken anywhere in the world regarding the GM wheat and thus it poses unacceptable risks to human and animal health as well as undermining food sovereignty and nutrition security.
GM wheat prolongs and perpetuates the destructive nature of GM monocultures and the spraying of toxic chemicals and forecloses a just transition to agroecological practices.
The South African biosafety regulators have failed to adopt a risk averse and cautious approach in assessing the application as it is required to do, in granting approval for the importation of GM wheat to enter the South African food system.
There are serious concerns about contamination of the South African food supply. These concerns also extend to Botswana, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Zambia, and Namibia, countries in the region that import wheat from South Africa.
Considering the serious concerns raised, the Executive Council must review and reassess its decision and set the approval aside.