COM 0882.009 2006-2008 - Laserfiche WebLink

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From: Lorrin Pang. Speaking as Private Citizen (These views do not represent the Dept of Health) GENERAL PRINCIPLES A wise society learns that caution is a virtue, especially when the consequences may be irreversible. Genetically modified (GM) foods may be considered an irreversible introduction of a life form into the environmem. Furthermore, unlike micoma or coqui frogs, changes may be unrecognizable, subtle and impossible to identify and remove. There are disturbing reports that the mutations may transfer beyond the intended crops into the soil microbes and contaminate the ecosystem in this manner.' If you look within the health field, the pharmaceutical industry has adopted the most strict version of what is called, the Precautionary Principle. Here is how it works: • A new product is initially assumed to be 100% toxic and totally ineffective until proven otherwise. Thus, initially there is never an indication to use the product. • As test results are compiled (a costly and time consuming effort) we get some idea of when the benefit to risk-cost ratio of the new product outweighs those of the alternatives (including the "do-nothing" alterantive). If the new product is advantageous, we instruct the public when and how to use it, label it, and market. • Even after marketing we monitor for toxicity and sometimes see severe side effect (501% of marketed drugs) that might lead to a recall (5% of pharmaceuticals).3 Notice we do not need to show 1001/9 safety for a product to be marketed, only that its benefits to risks outweigh those of the alternatives. • Furthermore, although we can never know with absolute certainty the rate of toxicity, say 109/u, we are willing to accept a range of uncertainty (say 6-141/9). Lesser versions of this Precautionary Principle should be considered "gambling" and reckless, especially for GM organisers with their potential for irreversible consequences. Strictly speaking not following the precautionary principle is even worse than gambling - because when betting on an outcome at least one has some sense of the odds. in light of this Precautionary Principle, general warnings by health officials that GM foods are inadequately regulated should be heeded. The World Health Organization (Bangkok Post, 13 Oct 2004) stated that health aspects of GM foods (either harm or safety) are unknown, and called for more testing to prove safety prior to release, so that an early action plan can be implemented to cope with possible health risks posed by transgenic food: "At this point, we have no evidence to say that it is dangerous to consume food products that contain GMOs, but at the same time we also don't know its negative