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The debate surrounding the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) has become hot on the global agriculture scene since the onset of the green revolution with some countries imposing a total ban on GMO agriculture while others are promoting it.
In Zimbabwe, the issue has been controversial and is being debated in Parliament where legislators are divided. Some are calling for the lifting of the ban on GM crops while others are defending the ban on GM imports. Players in the food industry have been at the forefront of lobbying the Government to allow GM agriculture into the country as a way of boosting food production.
A GMO is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques. These techniques, generally known as recombinant DNA technology use DNA molecules from different sources which are combined into one molecule to create a new set of genes. This DNA is then transferred into an organism giving it a modified set of genes.
Scientific research has shown that GM agriculture is cheaper to practise and helps improve food production. Whether GM agriculture addresses the needs of African farmers has been a controversial subject causing division in the food industry, among agriculturalists and environmental scientists.
Zimbabwe has faced continuous droughts since the turn of the new millennium and some are considering GM agriculture as the lasting solution to the problem.
Science and Technology Minister Heneri Dzinotyiwei is one of the chief advocates of GM agriculture in Zimbabwe. The minister once said the country is reviewing its policy on GM agriculture with a view of shifting its policy on the matter.
“Global organisations such as Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Institute for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology have recommended that GMOs are safe,” he said then.
However, many African countries including Kenya, are banning GM agriculture. Some countries across Europe also recently imposed bans on GM agriculture, citing serious environmental problems associated with the practice.
Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Minister Dr Joseph Made has already declared that the Government will not allow GMO agriculture although some argue that it boosts food production.
He said the Government would instead improve the supply of farm inputs such as fertiliser and seed and invest in training farmers on mechanisation and irrigation development to boost food supply than using cheaper but unsustainable means which would be detrimental to the environment.
Zimbabwe is one of the largest producers of white seed maize in the world and would not want to contaminate the seed by allowing GM seeds into the country, he said.
Scientific research has indeed shown that while GMOs are cheaper to produce, they have serious consequences on the environment, ecosystem and biodiversity and on human health, the main reason why GMOs are now condemned by many countries. Furthermore, GM foods have tendencies to provoke allergies and nutritional effects associated with GMOs on human health.
The way governments have regulated GM foods varies. In some countries GM foods are not yet regulated. Countries, which have legislation in place, focus primarily on assessment of risks for consumer health while countries that have provisions for GM foods usually, also regulate GMOs in general taking into account health and environmental risks as well as control trade-related issues such as potential labelling and testing.
Although there are no specific international regulatory systems in place, several international organisations are involved in developing protocols for GMOs.
In Zimbabwe, the Bio-safety Board is the statutory body mandated to manage the application and use of biotechnology and its products. It has developed some regulations governing the use of GMOs. The board says the implications of new biotechnology like GMOs and cloning on human health, food security, environmental sustainability and social norms and values remain debatable.
“Suffice to say that there is no agreement on these issues at international level. Solutions have to be found if the people of Africa are to lead productive and quality lives,” said the board. However, the Government has not done much to closely control the importation of GMOs mainly due to sanctions-induced economic problems that the country has battled since 2000. It has been reported that some foods like chicken, milk, fruits and vegetables being sold locally are imported GMOs from South Africa and Brazil.
As the debate continues, food crises in many African countries have drawn attention to the use of emergency GM food aid. A number of governments in the region raised concerns relating to environmental food safety fears. Although workable solutions have been found for distribution of milled grain in some countries, others have restricted the use of GM food aid, insisting they only wanted foods which do not contain GMOs.
Dr Made said it was important to raise awareness of every player in the food industry about the importance of conserving and protecting the ecosystem before venturing into farming practices that have long-term effects on the environment and food production.
Recent scientific studies have shown that engineered crops, if continuously used on a piece of land, will become weeds (crops with undesirable effects) causing harm to non-GMO crops.
This will consequently harm biodiversity and the natural ecosystem. Engineered plants will become conduits through which genes move into wild plants which will become weeds, posing problems to the ecosystem.
Dr Made said it was unfortunate that those who are advocating GM agriculture in the country had no scientific background hence did not know the importance of environmental sustainability in agriculture.
A recent study revealed that GM crops may initiate a perturbation that may have effects that ripple through the ecosystem in ways that are difficult to predict and control. Genetically engineered crops produce viruses that can facilitate the creation of new, more virulent and more widely spread viruses.
In addition, plants engineered to express potentially toxic substances could present risks to other organisms like birds in the same ecosystem.
Apart from harming biodiversity and the environment, it is also believed that GM foods are harmful to human health and causing obesity and other diseases. Long considered a by-product of modern life in rich, developed countries, obesity is spreading into developing countries as well, according to the British medical journal The Lancet.
It noted that nutrition experts now warn of “a global epidemic” of obesity-related diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, cancer, and cardiovascular complications. Some occur as a result of consuming GMOs.
Dr Made also recently said GMO foods contain toxic substances that are harmful to health and are less nutritious than non-GMO foods.
Informed by these arguments relating to negative environmental and human health consequences, many governments in the euro zone and Africa are banning GM agriculture.
Dr Made also said it would be an economic disaster for Zimbabwe to practise GM agriculture since GMO imports were not allowed in many countries.
“If Zimbabwe produces surplus food for export where would you expect us to export with most countries now banning GMO foods? It means that will be an economic blunder,” he said.
He added that since agriculture contributes significantly to Zimbabwe’s economy, it would be unwise to implement policies that are being rejected in the region as it would result in economic isolation.
Online Reporter
Bongani Ndlovu