Monsanto: Genetic Engineering Error in Canada 

PANUPS 23jun97

In mid-April 1997, Monsanto announced that it was recalling genetically engineered canola seed containing an unapproved gene that had gotten into the product by mistake. Canola is a crop grown for livestock feed and for oil consumed by humans. Canola oil is used in low-fat foods, pharmaceuticals, nutritional supplements, confectionery products, margarine and shortening, personal care products, lubricants, soaps and detergents.

The recall was reportedly initiated by Monsanto Canada Ltd., and by Limagrain Canada Seeds, Inc., of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, which was selling the seed under license from Monsanto. The canola seed had been genetically engineered to be resistant to glyphosate, an herbicide marketed by Monsanto under the brand name Roundup.

According to "The Ram's Horn," a Canadian newsletter devoted to analysis of the food system, Monsanto reported to the Evaluation Branch of the Biotechnology Strategies and Coordination Office of the Canadian government that it was recalling 60,000 bag units (enough seed to plant 600,000 to 750,000 acres) of two types of canola seeds because one or both types contained the wrong gene. Under Canadian law, there are three levels of approval for genetically engineered crops: environmental (meaning the crop can be planted), livestock (the resulting crop can be fed to livestock), and human (the resulting crop can be fed to humans). Two Roundup-resistant canola genes, RT-73 and RT-200, had been approved for planting, but only RT-73 was approved for livestock and humans. It was the unapproved RT-200 that somehow ended up in the seed that had to be recalled.

Limagrain's Gary Bauman said his company will try to discover how the mistake occurred. However, he said it will be difficult to trace exactly where in the process it happened because the seeds available for testing now are progeny of the original seeds. "We may never know how it happened," he said.

"Rachel's Environment & Health Weekly," the weekly publication of the Environmental Research Foundation, states "The presence of the unapproved canola gene in a commercial product reveals, at a minimum, that Monsanto's quality-assurance programs failed in this instance, and that the biotechnology regulatory system in Canada is ineffective."

Monsanto stated that only two farms had planted the withdrawn varieties on approximately 150 acres. Last year Monsanto made a limited introduction of Roundup Ready canola in Canada on about 50,000 acres. The company would not state the amount of acreage that had been targeted for the 1997 season.

Recently, Monsanto reported that the company's agrochemical sales had increased by over 29% during the first quarter of 1997 to US$1,067 million -- due in large part to increased sales of Roundup worldwide. Roundup is Monsanto's best-selling and most profitable product, bringing Monsanto about US$1.5 billion per year. "Roundup is the engine that's driving Monsanto," said Paul Raman, a chemical industry analyst for the investment banking firm S.G. Warburg & Co. "In five to 10 years Roundup could be a US$4 billion product," Raman said. That extra money would come chiefly from expanding sales of crops that are genetically engineered to resist the weed killer.

AgrEvo also markets herbicide-tolerant canola in Canada, but stated that it does not expect to profit from the withdrawal of Monsanto's Roundup Ready canola. AgrEvo's seed suppliers had already sold out of glufosinate-tolerant "Liberty Link" canola before the recall occurred. AgrEvo will not disclose how much Liberty Link canola was planted this season. Two open-pollinated varieties and two hybrids of Liberty Link canola were sold in Canada this year. During the first two years that the crop was planted, only one variety was sold and seed was crushed for domestic use only; this year there will be no restrictions on subsequent sales. AgrEvo's glufosinate canola was the first transgenic herbicide-tolerant crop to be grown commercially.

In related news, the St. Louis Post Dispatch reported on May 17, 1997, that Monsanto's vice-president, Virginia Weldon, is a "top candidate" for the job of chief of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Sources: Rachel's Environment & Health Weekly #549, June 5, 1997. The Rams Horn: A Monthly Newsletter of Food System Analysis, April 1997. Agrow: World Crop Protection News, May 2, May 16 and May 30, 1997.

Contact: PANNA.

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