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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0883.018 2006-2008 Page 1 of 2 PI INC Murashige, Laura From: Christine Sheppard [christinesheppard@hawaii.rr.com] Sent: Sunday, January 06, 2008 2:12 PM 20H AN ? Pfd 3 46 To: counciltestimony@co.hawaii.hi.us Subject: Please Support Resolution 463-08 on Genetically Modified Coffee OOUNT1 : F H1'191411 Attachments: GMO Position KCFA.doc; ATT00051.html January 6, 2008 9 Bob Jacobson, Chair Environmental Mgt. Committee and Committee Members Hawaii County Council counciltestimony@co.hawaii.hi.us? Fax 968-8912 v Honored Council Members: The Kona Coffee Farmers Association (KCFA) thanks you for hearing Resolution 463-08 on genetically modified coffee, and urges you to pass this Resolution. Below are some key points, and attached are the KCFA GMO Position Statement and Rationale. **If GMO coffee were to be grown in Hawaii County, there will be cross- pollination and contamination of our valuable heirloom crop.? The coffee-growing industry is one of Hawaii?s most successful, and needs this protection. v **As was demonstrated by the rice industry, GMO field trials can cause pervasive contamination.? By way of dramatic example, in August of 2006 it came to the attention of the USDA and to rice growers in six states, mostly in Arkansas and Missouri, that conventional long grain rice had been contaminated with a GMO variety, LLRICE60I.? The rice farmers have lost their export markets in Japan and Europe. Rice futures have plummeted, creating class action lawsuits pending against Bayer Crop Science, the patent holder.? The California Rice Commission voted on March 15, 2007, to put in place a moratorium on field trials of GMO rice in California.? This move was intended to protect California?s valuable rice crop. v **As demonstrated by the rice example, field trials can cause pervasive contamination.? If Hawaiian coffees become contaminated with GMO genes, they would not continue to be viewed as specialty coffees on the world market and would not continue to command premium prices. (SCAA Position on GMO coffees) ? Gomm. No. 3 • 18 Ref. To,pre"ON- G Ref. Dote JA N8 ZUUd 1/7/2008 Page 2 of 2 **Japanese and European authorities are well aware that when GMO field trials occur in a region, GMO contamination is highly likely.? Field trials in Hawaii County would create the perception of GMO contamination and, before export to Japan and Europe, Hawaiian coffees would need to be tested for GMO genes. **In February 2007, John Stiles of Integrated Coffee Technologies, testified that he has GMO coffee trees ready for field trials in Hawaii in 12 to 18 months. This information, and the fact that HDOA has given no assurance that there will not be field trials of GMO coffee in Hawaii County, gives urgency to the need for enacting protection 0 We appreciate your support for Big Island agriculture.? Please pass Resolution 463-08. Sincerely yours, Kenneth Sheppard President - Kona Coffee Farmers Association? 1/7/2008 4~`~ \ COFFEE FARMERS ASSOCIATION I 0 11ox 5436 Kai Iua Kona I1ax+mi 96745 USA okonacoffcefai mcrs.or6 in fo.<< konacolfCCF Inner s.o POSITION ON GENETICALLY MODIFIED COFFEE STOCK WHEREAS, coffee has been grown continuously in the districts of North and South Kona for over one hundred and seventy years and is acknowledged to be one of the highest quality coffees in the world and the " Guatemalan" cultivar, also referred to as Kona typica, is the predominant variety grown; WHEREAS, the close to two century-long heritage of Kona coffee has produced a unified community uniquely rich in history and culture unlike anywhere in the world; and WHEREAS, Kona Coffee today provides an enormous economic contribution to the County of Hawaii and the State of Hawaii, generating approximate yields of 3 million pounds of green coffee annually with an estimated income at the farm gate in excess of fifteen million dollars, and a much higher value at the wholesale and retail levels, supplemented by an increasing amount of ag-tourism dollars earned daily from the Kona Coffee Festival, farm tours, and other expanding coffee belt activities, is produced on approximately 650 farms, employing 650 families and other farm workers; WHEREAS, the high farm gate value enjoyed by Kona coffee growers and the expanding "niche market" established by the Kona coffee industry merits thoughtful, respectful, and protective attention from responsible federal and state agencies, and private entrepreneurial interests involved in the development of biotechnology; and WHEREAS, although coffee is primarily self pollinated, since it may be cross pollinated approximately 10% of the time, non-genetically modified coffee in neighboring orchards could become pollinated with genetically modified (GM) pollen; WHEREAS , organic coffee is an expanding high value "niche" crop within the Kona Coffee industry and organic coffee must contain no trace of GM interference and organic coffee farmers would not be able to prove non-contamination from GM plantings in the region except at high cost for special DNA tests; and WHEREAS, the Specialty Coffee Association of America has stated that a genetically modified coffee is not consistent with their definition of quality; and WHEREAS, with delayed acceptance or non-acceptance of genetically modified coffee and some other crops by Japan and European Union nations, as well as the fact that several states of the United States are currently reviewing legislation that would require genetically modified foods to be labeled, the price of genetically modified Kona coffee could be negatively impacted due to decreased demand; and WHEREAS , before commercialization, genetically engineered plants/organisms must conform with standards set by State and Federal marketing statutes including state seed certification laws, the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA), the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), and the Federal Plant Pest Act; and GMO Position (page 2) WHEREAS, while it is recognized that the Kona Coffee Farmers Association has no regulatory authority nor scientific competence to regulate the release and development of GM crops, the KCFA may legitimately respond to the concerns of farmers and others with a stake in the future of Kona's gourmet coffee industry, and may further express such concerns to those agencies and institutions responsible for the development, permitting, oversight and regulation of GM crops. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE KONA COFFEE FARMERS ASSOCIATION, that the Kona Coffee Farmers Association opposes the introduction of genetically modified coffee plants into the state of Hawaii and requests the following: 1. A moratorium on the release of genetically modified coffee plants into the state of Hawaii until a regulatory regime has been adopted that includes extensive evaluation of genetic contamination from pollen drift and other environmental consequences and secondary ecological effects. 2. A statute, regulation, and/or rule that liability for any external costs to individuals and the environment caused by physical spillover effects, such as genetic contamination from pollen drift, must be bome by the growers, manufacturers and distributors of genetically engineered plants. 3. In conjunction with the establishment of an adequate regulatory regime as outlined in item (1) above, a requirement that genetically modified plantings to be explicitly labeled as such, and neighboring properties notified--the costs of such labeling and notification to be borne by the owner or lessee of the planted land. 4. A requirement that any coffee produced from genetically modified plants to be explicitly labeled as such at every stage of its production through to sale to provide adequate information to processors and consumers--the costs of such labeling and verification to be borne by the growers and processors of the genetically modified coffee. Ken Sheppard - President January 2007 RATIONALE BEHIND OUR POSITION Will GM Coffee grown in Hawaii affect Kona orchards? Yes, here's why... • The APHIS database (publicly available on the web) lists three projects of testing by UH. Of these, CTAHR's 'caffeine-free' plants on Oahu were destroyed in December 2000. Today CTAHR does not have any GMO coffee. HARC's are secured in a greenhouse on Oahu. In addition to these, there are GM experiments being done by Integrated Coffee Technologies (ICTI) that do not need to be listed on the database, as it only applies to field tests, not to lab work. ICTI now says it has plants ready to go into field tests in Spring 2008. Conceivably there could be more we do not know about. • Dr Bittenbender of UH reported to the HCA "If the current coffee genetic engineering program on nematode resistance advances to field testing then CTAHR and /or HARC may request a permit to test in a nematode infested field in Kona." The Kona coffee industry does not need to be consulted or notified when these field tests take place. USDA signs off on the permits for field tests, and they too have no structure in place to consult those who make their living from the crop. • Cross-pollination can take place between GM crops and non-GM. Although coffee is considered self-fertile, it does in fact cross-pollinate. The research on the subject lists studies with percentages from 3 to 93%. Dr Bittenbender uses a figure of between 9-16%. • How far does cross-pollination occur? No one knows for certain. When they did the papaya experiments they used a safety zone of a quarter of a mile. Yet Kona bees (Kona Queen Bee) have a range of 2 miles minimum up to 8 miles. • If cross-pollination occurs, the crop will have a GM element. If the farmer uses those beans to grow new trees, he will be growing a GM hybrid. Even if only the rootstock is GM (with grafted scions of non-GM- coffee), if neglected, it could grow from the rootstock portion to become a pollinator. And the crop produced from GM rootstock grafted with non-GM-coffee would be considered a GM crop. • What will happen to the organic farms - how will they prove no GM contamination in order to keep their organic certification. How will non-organic farms know if neighboring orchards contain GM stock that may be cross-pollinating with their orchard. CONCLUSION: Yes it WILL affect our orchards - no-one can yet predict with accuracy to what degree. But if any is planted in Hawaii Island, a GM element will have been introduced which we will not be able to eliminate. If any is planted in Hawaii State there are no safeguards or agricultural inspections in place to stop plants, seeds, or bees traveling between the islands. This becomes even more dangerous with the advent of the SuperFerry allowing case of travel for bees and large consignments of plants. Can a GM Kona Coffee be marketed like normal Kona Coffee? No, here's why. • A large and increasing segment of the market will not purchase GM foods, or foods with a GM history anywhere in its origin. More than 35 countries, including Japan, have laws in place or planned which require the mandatory labeling of food containing GM ingredients, or else laws which restrict the import of GM- foods. • The European Parliament has mandated labeling requirements for genetically modified foods, lowering the threshold to one-half of one percent and declaring zero tolerance for conventional food containing GM ingredients. • Major polls conducted by Rutgers University and ABC News both found that 90% of American consumers support GM labeling. • Oregon successfully gathered enough signatures to place mandatory labeling of GM foods on the ballot. Campaigners have vowed to place similar measures on the ballot in a dozen states, including Colorado, Washington, and California. • The Specialty Coffee Association of America does not consider GM coffee a "specialty coffee" so GM Kona would no longer have that status. • Kona Coffee is considered one of the worlds best coffees and sells for the highest price. It is unlikely that consumers would pay a gourmet price for a GM product. One of our marketing points is our 200 year heritage trees. GM trees would not have that cachet. CONCLUSION: GM Kona Coffee will have to be sold at a much reduced price due to several factors: no longer considered a gourmet product; hugely diminished world market that will accept it resulting in a glut to those markets still open to it stringent labeling requirements may make consumers reject it. OVERALL, the Kona Coffee Farmers Association believes that ANY introduction of GM plantings into Hawaii will cause Kona coffees price to fall sharply, and 650 farmers will lose their ability to maintain their coffee business. This situation will exist until such time as the worldwide market accepts GM foods, and Kona coffee farmers cannot afford to be the test case for this.