Are GMOs harmful or helpful?

The genesis of the GMO foods was precipitated by the inefficacies of the cross breeding between varieties to provide more robust resistance to the pest attack, effect of droughts and production of high yields. The world population is currently estimated to be six billion and is expected to double, ceteris paribus, to 12 billion in 50 years.
More land is now devoted to construction, conservancies and mining. Consequently, arable land is drastically reduced. Urbanization continues to intensify. Worldwide, all governments have emulated Zimbabwe by declaring inflation as enemy number one. Food prices contribute significantly to the computation of inflation figures and therefore, higher food production output levels are required to stabilise food prices.
GMO stands for genetically modified organisms. This is genetic engineering that seeks to enhance the desired traits of crops using the latest molecular biology technique.
Plant geneticists can isolate a gene responsible for drought tolerance and insert that gene into a different plant.
The new genetically-modified plant will gain drought tolerance as well. Not only can genes be transferred from one plant to another, but genes from non-plant organisms can also be used. The best known example of this is the use of Bacillus thuringiensis (B.t.) genes in maize and other crops. B.t. is a naturally occurring bacterium that produces crystal proteins that are lethal to insect larvae. B.t. crystal protein genes have been transferred into corn, enabling the corn to produce its own pesticides against insects such as the corn borer.
The perceived advantages of GMOs are abounding. They include:
– GMOs can provide high yields. In South Africa, GMO maize farmers realise more than 15 tonnes per hectare compared to three tonnes per hectare of organic maize. This, ultimately, reduces the cost of production per tonne.
– Malnutrition remains a thorn in third world countries as most citizens heavily rely on one type of grain, which is their staple food. This may be wheat, maize or rice and will not carry all essential nutrients. The shortage of Vitamin A, for example, has caused blindness in poorer countries. A new GMO engineered rice variety christened “golden rice” that produces high Vitamin A content was created under a project funded by the Rockefeller foundation and will be given for free. So, GMO can also enhance the required nutrient content in a crop.
– Medicines and vaccines are costly to produce and sometimes require special storage conditions not readily available in third world countries. Researchers are working to develop edible vaccines in tomatoes and potatoes. These vaccines will be much easier to ship, store and administer than traditional injectable vaccines.
– GMO allows for enhanced disease and pest resistance. they also prevent heavy usage of herbicides as the crop will be able to outgrow and fight weeds just on application of single and moderate herbicide, thereby saving the environment.
Few years ago, Germany banned a certain maize GMO variety called Monsanto after serious health concerns. In South Africa Monsanto caused a serious and devastating 80 percent crop failure.
In Zimbabwe, there is no clear and strict legislation that pronounces the prohibition or permissibility of GMO grains, but it remains the prerogative of the Department of Plant Inspection and the National Bio-Tec-hnology Authority of Zimbabwe.
What is clear though is that the importation of GMO grain is not possible and millers have been barred from accessing these gra-ins. In few exceptional cases where it was approved, rules applied make it an unviable business venture.
The prevalent raging debate on whether the milling industry must have unfettered access to GMO grains just like their South African counterparts was sparked by these cheap imports competing with the local industry, which is only allowed to used organic maize. This development creates unfair competition as the raw materials used are different.
For the record, South Africa is expecting this season a yield of 13 million tonnes of white maize of which, 800 000 tonnes of that will be organic, thus less than 10 percent of their production and the rest is GMO. Eventually, the price gap is widening.
At present, organic maize now cost +47 percent more than GMO maize. In simple terms, the producer of GMO maize meal in South Africa will have a 50 percent price advantage over the local miller. On the same matter, internationally organic stocks are fast depleting and our insistence on organic grains must be quickly revisited.
The status quo that allows for the importation of finished GMO basic commodities and bars millers to import GMO maize leaves millers on the cliff edge. To date, the milling industry is yet to get satisfactory answers from the National Biotechnology Authority of Zimbabwe on this anomaly.
However, it is imperative to interrogate the benefits for our country if it surrenders its organic purity now and accepts in full the GMO culture.
It must be borne in mind that it is difficult to reverse the effect of GMOs once farming  has begun. It is also imperative to note that there are no known health side effects of consuming GMO foods.
Also there is an emerging elite and health conscious market niche in western world that now insists on organic foods. But questions are:
– If we embark on GMO production now and lose our regional markets, will we compete with the South American farmers on the world market? For starters, will Zimbabwe be able to export maize and wheat to South Africa at cheaper prices than their local prices?
– Will our local seed producing houses have the financial resources to quickly adopt this technology and provide enough seed?

– Tafadzwa Musarara is the national chairman of the Grain Millers Associa-tion of Zimbabwe.
contact: musarara@yaho o.com