Losers in the battle against biotechnology

An ugly battle is brewing and Maine is about to become the first casualty. A gaggle of activist groups led by Greenpeace has decreed that new and improved agricultural crops produced by biotechnology are a worldwide menace and has vowed to eliminate them. After years of vandalizing farmers’ fields and frightening consumers in Europe, they’re bringing their war tao the United States. And Maine is the first target.

In recent years, scientists have learned to tweak the genetic code that carries the blueprint for each living thing. For medicine, this ability, called biotechnology, has yielded new treatments for a host of illnesses including diabetes, heart disease, stroke, cancer and rare genetic diseases once thought to be incurable. Now, biotechnology is being used to create new varieites of agricultural crops that required fewer pesticides, less water, less fertilizer and less land to grow. Many agronomists believe the new bio-crops are essential if we are to feed the world’s growing population.

The anti-biotechnology forces counter with their vision of a world supplied by organic farmers. What they don’t say is it would require plowing under an area equal to the United States, Europe and South America to produce enough food from low-yielding organic methods.

Frustrated that their destruction of bio-crops hasn’t dissuarded farmers from planting them, the activists are now shifting to the foods made from those crops. Their strategy is to frighten consumers so they won’t buy foods containing bio-crop ingredients. They’ve even coined the term “Frakenfoods” to convey their message of fear. If consumers won’t buy bio-crop-containig foods, farmers wont plant them and the battle will be won.

Fortunately, the Food and Drug Administration, which safeguards our food supply, foresaw the coming of foods made with bio-crop ingredients and adopted strict regulatory guidelines for them. The guidelines are based on sound science and backed by the prestigious National Research Council. Just as with the FDA’s review of drugs, the guidelines are designed to intercept potentially harmful foods before they reach the market, as they did with a bio-soybean that could have caused allergic reactions.

What does this have to do with Maine? Stymied in their attempts to chance FDA policy, the anti-bio-crop activists have set their sights on state legislatures. Last year a bill was introduced in the Maine Legislature that would have required special labels on foods made with bio-crop ingredients. Fortunately, Maine legislators thought decisions on food labeling should be made in Washington, not in Augusta, and the bill died. But the Maine activists, egged on by their out-of-state supporters, have promised to return.

The losers in this battle against biotechnology won’t be farmers or grocers. Farmers will grow and grocers will sell whatever consumers want. The real losers will be people on limited incomes and those in developing countries who depend on a nutritious, affordable and plentiful food supply to survive. The environment too will suffer as more ground is plowed into fields to feed a growing world populatoin and more tons of pesticides are sprayed into crops.

There are arguments to be made on both sides of the food labeling debate. But for Maine to go it alone would be a mistake. Requiring special food labels for Maine would increase the cost of food for Mainers and limit choices as manufacturers who opt not to develop special packaging for Maine’s small market pull their products from grocery shelves.

Worse, it would brand Maine as a state opposed to new technology. Biotechnology is fueling an economic boom in the life sciences just as the Internet is doing for the computer industry. After years of neglecting biotechnoogy, Maine has begun investing in this burgeoning field. The payoff will be high-paying jobs for graduates of programs like the Kennebec Valley Technical College’s bioscience program.

Caving in to the anti-biotechnology fear mongers at this critical time could wreck and important building block in Maine’s future.

Douglas R. Johnson, Ph.D. is a partner in GreeTree Communications, a biotechnology and pharmaceuticals public relations firm in Stonington. His e-mail address is greentree@acadia.net.