Farmers worry as India's 'illegal' GM rice is pulled from EU shelves

The discovery of 500 tonnes of genetically modified (GM) rice by the European Commission and subsequent withdrawal of the rice flour from the markets has rung alarm bells among farm activists who noted that the GM paddy cultivation was not allowed in India except for confined field trials.

Following an alert from France in June, the Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed notified the commission, an EU body. The notification identified the product as 'Unauthorised genetically modified (p35S and tNos) rice flour from India'. The flour and its products were marketed in nearly 20 EU countries, which are being recalled.

On Tuesday, the Coalition for GM-Free India wrote to A K Jain, Chairperson of Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee at the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change expressing concern over the contamination of paddy seeds or leaks of GM seeds.

"While India does not allow GM rice cultivation, we've had various GM rice varieties at various stages of confined field trials. Global experiences show us that seed and food supply chains can get contaminated from field trials of GM crops in general and GM rice in particular," the letter said, citing the example of the United States, and the GM rice fiasco where a company had to pay $750 million in damages to 11,000 farmers for contamination.

The discovery of GM rice from India, it said, will cost the farmers as the country exported rice worth Rs 65,000 crore in 2020-21. "Such loss of reputation will affect market prices," the letter said.

The letter said the discovery of Bt cotton, Bt brinjal and Bt soybean found to have been grown illegally in India shows that GM crops in field trials are contaminating the farms and food. "It is an unfortunate truth that our regulatory system has been found ineffective in curbing," it added.

Rajesh Krishnan from the Coalition, a farmer based in Wayanad, said the news was of concern not just to states growing Basmati rice but also to southern parts of the country which have been exporting traditional varieties of rice in the recent years.

"In India, we have a growing trend of export of non-Basmati rice over the last few years. The rice grown in Kerala is reaching West Asian and European markets. Any contamination will hit the farmers hard," he said.

The news comes in the wake of a private company seeking field trials for Bt cotton and maize in Karnataka, a proposal that has already seen much opposition from the farmers and activists.

Kavita Kuruganti of the Alliance for Sustainable & Holistic Agriculture said farmers in Karnataka remain vulnerable to incidents of contamination or leakage as the state government has not taken a stand against GM crops.

"There is enough scientific evidence to show the damage caused by GM crops to the environment and human health. In India, all the contaminations are linked to field trials. Those who vouch for the safety of field trials are yet to fix the liability for incidents of contamination. This shows that our regulatory mechanisms are unfit to handle such events," she said.

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