NCGA
Biotech Working Group, Industry Reps. Discuss Unintended Releases (8-17-05)
The National Corn
Growers Association’s (NCGA) Biotechnology Working Group (BWG) met
in Research Triangle Park, N.C., last week with several biotech companies
to discuss ways to reduce unintended releases of biotech crops.
Representatives from
Bayer CropScience, BIO: Biotechnology Industry Organization, Dow AgroSciences,
Monsanto, Pioneer Hi-Bred International, a subsidiary of DuPont, Syngenta,
and U.S. Grains Council attended the two-day meeting organized by NCGA.
“We met with
members of industry to make sure they’re thinking about how to avoid
unintended releases and, should there be another one, how our groups will
deal with it,” said Nathan Danielson, BWG team leader. “It
is clear that industry realizes the importance of keeping grain that is
not yet deregulated out of the markets.”
“The main thing
is we want to keep the communication lines open,” said South Dakota
corn grower Darren Ihnen, BWG chair. “If something should ever come
up, we won’t be in the dark. We’ll know how to respond. We’re
creating the relationships to work together in the future.”
BWG Vice Chair Martin
Barbre shared Ihnen’s thoughts.
“I think the
technology providers came away with a better understanding of where we’re
coming from,” he said. “And we have a better understanding
of their policies and procedures in place. A lot of work has been done
in the past year, especially in the last six months.”
Ihnen said the group
realizes corn growers, industry and government need to work closer with
regulators.
“Going forward,
we’ll be working closer with the regulators to keep the flow of technology
going ahead. A lot of work needs to be done with the regulatory agencies
and foreign governments,” Ihnen said. “Obviously, we need to
promote that biotech is good, and not harmful. But we also need to get
a better understanding of how other countries’ systems work. Each
nation has its own customs and way of doing things. We need to understand
exactly how their systems operate in order to work better within their
framework. That being said, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and
Plant Health Inspections Service has done a great job of outreach to all
stakeholders.
The group also suggested
industry and growers should stay informed about NCGA stewardship programs.
“We discussed
our stewardship programs with industry: Know Before You Grow and Know Where
to Go,” Danielson said. “It’s important that industry
knows what NCGA is doing to help farmers do their jobs better, and to understand
how we can work together as an industry.”
Barbre said the companies
are eager to help with the stewardship programs.
“I think the
companies will continue to be supportive,” Barbre said. “After
we stressed the importance of the programs, they now have the attitude:
‘We’ve got to keep Know Before You Grow up to date.’”