Biotechnology students from the University of the Philippines (UP) added their voices to the rising dissent to the recent Supreme Court (SC) ruling against Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) eggplant and appealed to the Court to “reconsider” its decision and “reflect on probable overwhelming consequences” of the ruling to the affected sectors.
The UP League of Agricultural Biotechnology Students (UP LABS) said in a statement that it is “deeply saddened” over the recent SC ruling against Bt talong (eggplant).
Farmers from the Philippines belonging to the Asian Farmers Network earlier said the SC ruling would cause the collapse of the corn industry in the country, affecting the economy and the lives of millions of farmers dependent on the industry. The Philippine Maize Federation Inc., likewise, said the SC decision to ban the field testing, commercialization and importation of GM crops could hurt the farm sector and the country’s bid for food self-sufficiency.
The UP LABS said the precautionary principle cited by the SC in its ruling was “unfounded” because it was grounded on a misnomer that only naturally produced food are safe, while those manipulated by man “are assumed to be dangerous.”
The precautionary principle was based on a ruling in the 2010 Procedure for Environmental Cases of the Philippine Supreme Court that was invoked by the petitioners, including Greenpeace, against Bt eggplant and other GM products.
The principle states that if there is uncertainty in assessing the cause-and-effect relationship between human activities and the environment, actions shall be taken by the court considering the following factors: 1) threats to human life or health; 2) inequity to present or future generations; and 3) prejudice to the environment without legal consideration of the environmental rights of those affected.
“We believe that invoking the precautionary principle is dangerous as basis on the merits of this scientific case. Because on scientific cases, let us always put in mind the reason we conduct research. Risks are the reason there are regulations in the first place, and strict and proper regulations are there so any perceived risk is precluded,” the students’ statement said.
“We are firmly convinced that the precautionary principle isn’t in favor of any scientific advances that are being pushed in our country, since we all know that everything we do involves risks and the only way to know that something is safe is through tests and studies,” they added.
The students promoting biotechnology education in the country expressed its “appeal to the Supreme Court to reconsider their promulgated decision and reflect on probable overwhelming consequences for the affected sectors.”
They said: “We pray to the highly respected justices of our land… that they will understand and appreciate the life works of our scientists on proving the safety of GMOs [genetically modified organisms] through field trials. We stand firm that our scientists, researchers and regulators are conducting the field trials in good faith. We salute our scientists for investing their time and efforts in advancing Philippine agriculture through modern biotechnology, and we pray that these may not be put to waste.”
At the same time, the biotech students said they were “greatly dismayed” on the SC’s nullification of the Department of Agriculture Administrative Order (DA-AO) 08, Series of 2002, or the Biosafety Policy on Genetically Modified Crops in the country. “The expanded decision of the SC will bring major setbacks against the stakeholders and industry in the agriculture sector,” they said.
DA AO 08-2002 is the policy on the importation and release into the environment of plants and plant products derived from the use of modern biotechnology.
This policy gives additional mandate to the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) on issuing permits to promote the safe and responsible use of biotechnology, and recognizes the policy of the state on acknowledging the potentials of modern biotechnology to improve the quality of life of the Filipino people.
“We believe that the biosafety regulation policy, through DA-AO 08-2002, is a workable yet highly monitored protocol for processing products of modern biotechnology,” the group said.
It added that in its 13 years of implementation of approval of the Bt corn in the Philippines, “no reported environmental and health problems were perceived from the consumption and production of Bt corn.”
“This was because before approval, strict food and environmental safety tests were conducted. Also, the history of safe use of Bacillus thuringiensis can be traced back to the 1920s. This product has also been accepted by organic farmers for over 50 years.”
The students said the nullification of DA-AO 08 and subsequent halting of the application, commercialization and importation of GM crops until a new AO is promulgated “may decelerate agricultural development in the country.”
They said it may also affect research, discourage students and slowdown the corn industry in the country. They said, “This will also impede the continuing researches on other modern biotechnology projects [e.g. Golden Rice, virus-resistant and delayed-ripening papaya and Bt cotton], consequently, these may cause the delay and loss of thesis and research grants for our fellow students, interns, researchers and scientists.”
With lesser opportunities in the Philippines, “the graduates may seek greener pastures in other countries,” and the youth might be discouraged to pursue a degree in specialized sciences because of the lack of institutional support, appreciation and incentives.
They said more than 415,000 corn farmers, poultry and livestock growers, feed millers, will be greatly affected. “The P90-billion-worth corn industry may suffer major losses on their income. We may no longer be self-sufficient in corn production because of the decision.”
UP LABS said three developing countries have started developing the GM crop almost at the same time. India and the Philippines, which were expected to commercialize the product first, have been stopped due to rulings of the Executive and Judiciary branches of their respective governments.
Bangladesh, on the other hand, has already approved and has been consuming Bt eggplant since 2014. “No incidence of harmful effects to the environment and humans were reported” since then, UP LABS said.
“Now, Bangladeshis benefits from the 70-percent to 90-percent reduction in insecticide use, consequently increasing the net income of their farmers—the true purpose of developing Bt crops,” the students said.
Respondents to the SC petition by anti-GMO groups are UP Los Baños (UPLB), UPLB Foundation Inc., DA-BPI, DA-Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority, the Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Environment Management Bureau, International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications, among others.
The UP LABS statement was also supported by the Biology Majors Alliance of the Philippines, UP College of Agriculture Student Council, UP College of Science Student Council, UP School of Statistics Student Council, Rizal Technological University (RTU) College of Arts and Sciences Student Council, UP Agricultural Society, UPLB Chemical Society, UPLB Genetics Society, UP Pabvlvm Scientia Sodalitas, UPLB Department of Science and Technology Scholars’ Society, UP Beta Kappa Fraternity, UP Molecular Biology and Biotechnology Society, UP Physician-Scientists Association, RTU Organization of Biotechnology Students, Our Lady of Fatima University-Quezon City League of Biology Enthusiasts, and RTU Interactive Psychology Students Association. Lyn Resurreccion