Biotech 'Promising Tool'

November 16, 2000

Biotechnology offers "one of the most promising tools for meeting future demand for an abundant, affordable, nutritious, and safe global food supply," according to James Schroeder, deputy under secretary for farm and foreign agricultural services at USDA. Speaking at the African Biotechnology Conference's closing session in Accra, Ghana, Schroeder said that "until now, biotechnology breakthroughs in agriculture have primarily benefitted farmers and consumers in developed countries." But now, "it is time to focus on research breakthroughs that benefit African farmers and consumers. There are a host of traditional African crops that stand to benefit from biotechnology and genetic improvement."

Biotechnology, Schroeder said, "holds the potential for reducing the use of crop chemicals, fossil fuels, and, water." He also acknowledged that "there are biophysical points of contention" -- in both developed and developing nations -- regarding food and environmental safety, as well as questions about intellectual property rights, organic certification, and marketing standards.

Through additional information and knowledge, Schroeder said, individuals and societies will eventually become more comfortable with the benefits of biotechnology. While some people will always focus on the risks of new technologies, he said, he cautioned that "there are also risks in not taking advantage of the benefits that new technologies may offer."