North Dakota and Montana Consider Moratoriums on Roundup Ready Wheat

(February 9, 2001 -- Cropchoice news) -- The legislatures of North Dakota
and Montana are debating whether to set moratoriums on genetically
engineered wheat.

This action comes amid declarations by major U.S. wheat customers that
they don't want to eat biotech wheat.

Tsutomu Shigota, senior managing director of the Japan Flour Millers
Association, earlier this month told Dow Jones: "Under the circumstances,
I strongly doubt that any bakery and noodle products made from genetically
modified wheat or even conventional wheat that may contain modified wheat
will be accepted in the Japanese market. World wheat supply has been
abundant in recent years, and I don't see why we have to deal with
modified wheat...I believe the production of modified wheat at this time
will be a very risky challenge for U.S. producers."

On Jan. 5, Algeria, which imports large amounts of durum wheat from the
United States, announced that it would not import any genetically modified
wheat. Egypt and Saudi Arabia are taking a similar tack with respect to
wheat.

Apparently, the strength of this resistance is not lost on legislators in
North Dakota, the country's top producer of spring wheat.

Terry Wanzek, chairman of North Dakota's Senate Agriculture Committee,
told Reuters: "Our major wheat customers say they won't accept any wheat
that has genetically enhanced characteristics, and we're listening to our
customers."

Monsanto, which is pressing ahead with plans to commercialize its Roundup
Ready wheat sometime between 2003 and 2005, has promised to work with the
National Association of Wheat Growers and U.S. Wheat Associates to develop
a system to segregate genetically modified wheat from its non-transgenic
counterparts, a company spokesman said. Monsanto also wants to build
acceptance of Roundup Ready wheat in foreign markets.

Many wheat farmers aren't convinced that Monsanto or the wheat industry
can do this, perhaps in part because of the StarLink corn debacle. Iowa
farmers planted 1 percent of their 2000 corn crop as StarLink, a
genetically engineered corn approved only for animal consumption. By
harvest time, almost 50 percent of the crop tested positive for StarLink.
After environmental organizations found the corn in taco shells, a slew of
product recalls ensued. Later, Japan was upset when it detected StarLink
in its U.S. corn imports.

Wheat farmers don't want a repeat of this fiasco.

To that end, lawmakers in North Dakota are considering moratorium on the
introduction of transgenic wheat seed in the state until at least August
2003.

Two other bills are also working their way through the legislature. One
would limit the rights of companies with patents on genetically modified
seed. The other, SB 2235, would establish a seed and crop verification
program for farmers who grow and market non-genetically modified wheat.

Meanwhile, the Montana legislature considers a two-year moratorium on the
cultivation of genetically modified wheat.

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