Scientist airs fears as SA gears up for GM debate

A gene technology moratorium bill proposed by South Australian Democrat Ian Gilfillan could stifle world-leading research in the state, a leading researcher has warned.

Prof Bryan Whan, CEO of the CRC for Molecular Plant Breeding, said that he understood the proposed bill sought to halt field trials of GM crops, despite an already stringent regulatory system led by the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator (OGTR).

SA Independent MLA Rory McEwen is due to present the gene technology moratorium bill to the SA Legislative Assembly next week, according to a spokesperson from his office.

"There are many scientists, including those at the CRC, who are quite concerned about the impact of the moratorium," Whan said.

Topping the list of the scientist's fears is that a moratorium could impact on the CRC's extensive collaborations with other organisations, including the University of Adelaide and the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI).

The CRC also has about 30 ongoing international collaborations, most importantly with core participant International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) in Mexico.

"Obviously if there is a moratorium and research can't continue into the field, we are concerned what will happen to these collaborations," Whan said, adding that a moratorium in New Zealand had severely impacted on research programs.

He said that contrary to popular belief, GM research was not controlled by multinational corporations. In Australia, most research in the area was done by publicly funded organisations, such as the CRC for Molecular Plant Breeding.

"The CRC is not a multinational corporation," Whan said. "We are a government-funded body which wants Australia to be at the forefront of molecular breeding technology."

While much of the recent debate about GM has centred on herbicide-tolerant GM canola, Whan said that the CRC was not looking at this crop at all, focusing instead on Australia's major wheat and barley crops, and the introduction of traits including disease resistance and drought tolerance.

Whan said that he understood grower concerns about Australia's clean and green image and the issue of market protection, emphasising that he believed they were valid concerns, but warned that the long-term view needed to be taken into account as well as the short-term view.

"Australia has to be at the leading edge of the technology to remain competitive, with heavily subsidised countries overseas," he explained.

He said that moves by the Gene Technology Grains Committee to develop systems that allowed coexistence of GM and non-GM crops were very positive. The GTGC, which has a broad membership covering the entire supply chain from farmers to the bulk handling industry, recently released a discussion paper outlining a strategic framework for maintaining coexistence.

The group is planning to develop a canola management plan to prepare for the commercial release of GM canola.

Whan said that the CRC was working with both the SA government and with farmers to provide them with the facts, and he was encouraged by MPs' responses to date.

The SA government, he said, was investing heavily in agricultural biotech, such as the new Australian Centre for Plant Functional Genomics at the University of Adelaide. "South Australia is a leading centre for this kind of work," Whan said.