An alien plant form has invaded Hong Kong and within a few short years has virtually overrunthe territory. The invader is a genetically modified form of papayas, which has become soprevalent that a debate is underway as to whether the engineered food should be exemptedfrom the Genetically Modified Food Ordinance, which became law on Sept 1. Local organicfarms are mounting vigorous opposition. Kahon Chan reports.
On a typical July morning in Pahoa of Hawaii, papaya farmer Lea Bernardo woke up to astaggering scene: thousands of papaya trees in his farms and in neighboring farms had beenchopped down at the trunk, leaving all the fruit to rot. The Hawaii Papaya Industry Associationcalled it was an act of "eco-terrorism" and offered a reward of $10,000 to track down theoffenders.
The papayas trees that had been attacked were genetically modified (GM) to resist a deadlyring spot virus, as were the trees on 170 other farms on Oahu and the Big Island. The ringspot virus became epidemic more than half a century ago and during the 1950s wiped out allthe papaya farms on the island of Oahu. Scientists from the University of Hawaii came up witha permanent solution in the 1990s - the genetic makeup of papaya plants was partiallyswapped to make them immune to the virus. The modified plant has been described astransgenic.
Transgenic papayas were first grown commercially in 1998 and now make up the majority ofHawaiian papayas. Though the genetically altered plants were credited with saving theindustry, according to Hawaii's Department of Agriculture, the annual yield of papayas in 2009remained lower than when the ring spot virus was at its peak.
The act of vandalism in July was another harsh reminder that environmental activists continueto haunt the food industry and even consumers. These activists oppose the practice ofgenetically modifying plants because the downstream affect of the modifications cannot beforetold. Greenpeace, for instance, contents the GM papaya contains a protein that causesallergies and a strain of antibiotic resistance marker gene. Evidence to support this argument,however, is limited.
Organic farms in Hawaii have faced a more pressing challenge. Certified organic farms areprohibited from producing GM crops and if bees land on flowers of organic papaya trees aftera buffet in a GM papaya field, DNA of the modified papaya will blend with that of the organicfruit so that its seeds are thus "contaminated". The fruit can no longer be sold at the lucrative"organic" price.
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1 comment:
Who would of thought SO much goes into one papaya....EEK!
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