Scion's GE Tree Field Trial Research Result Claims Unsubstantiated.
Crown Research Institute Scion's claim that its research shows that GE trees are environmentally safe is seriously misleading, according to the Soil & Health Association of NZ.
Soil & Health also believes that aspects of the GE pine tree field trial at Rotorua were continuously in breach of consent conditions and international obligations, for the trial's entire life.
Scion has issued a media report stating that its research based on its field trial shows no gene transference into insects and micro-organisms by GE trees and consequently genetically engineered trees are safe.
"Scion's prematurely terminated research is incomplete in design, unfinished, and unpublished in a peer reviewed journal," said Soil & Health spokesperson Steffan Browning. "Without good design and an appropriate research period, followed by publication in a peer reviewed journal, how can a CRI make credible claims?"
Crown Research Institute Scion's claim that its research shows that GE trees are environmentally safe is seriously misleading, according to the Soil & Health Association of NZ.
Soil & Health also believes that aspects of the GE pine tree field trial at Rotorua were continuously in breach of consent conditions and international obligations, for the trial's entire life.
Scion has issued a media report stating that its research based on its field trial shows no gene transference into insects and micro-organisms by GE trees and consequently genetically engineered trees are safe.
"Scion's prematurely terminated research is incomplete in design, unfinished, and unpublished in a peer reviewed journal," said Soil & Health spokesperson Steffan Browning. "Without good design and an appropriate research period, followed by publication in a peer reviewed journal, how can a CRI make credible claims?"
In respect of concerns that modified genes could be inadvertently transferred from transgenic plants, into the wider environment, Scion chief executive Dr Tom Richardson had said, "In the case of this trial, our results show that this did not occur. The trial has been monitored for nearly five years and there is no evidence of gene transfer into other organisms, or negative impact in the soil environment or insect population in and around the trial site."
Monitoring at the site is intended for another two years following removal of the trees in the next few weeks, aimed at detecting any potential gene transfer.
"For Scion to say that there was no horizontal gene transfer (HGT) following a primitive and short term study of only 5 years so far, is naïve or even duplicitous, certainly misleading" said Mr Browning.
Canterbury University School of Biological Sciences Professor Jack Heinemann (1), has asked, "Given that it would take all 6 billion people on earth, working in parallel, 30 thousand years to properly demonstrate no transgene transfer from those trees to just soil bacteria (much less all the other organisms in the environment) how did this independent research achieve a previously impossible detection capacity?"
"For Scion to say that there was no horizontal gene transfer (HGT) following a primitive and short term study of only 5 years so far, is naïve or even duplicitous, certainly misleading" said Mr Browning.
Canterbury University School of Biological Sciences Professor Jack Heinemann (1), has asked, "Given that it would take all 6 billion people on earth, working in parallel, 30 thousand years to properly demonstrate no transgene transfer from those trees to just soil bacteria (much less all the other organisms in the environment) how did this independent research achieve a previously impossible detection capacity?"
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