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Monsanto Seeks GE Wheat
Approval in Canada

Food Chemical News, May 6, 2002, Volume 44, Number 12
CRC Press LLC

Monsanto seeks reulatory approval for GE wheat this summer

Monsanto Canada expects to apply to the Canadian government this summer for
regulatory approval for its Roundup Ready genetically engineered wheat,
said company spokesperson Trish Jordan.

At the same time, Monsanto plans to ask U.S. regulators to approve the
wheat, and will also apply for approval in Japan sometime this year.

On the Canadian front, under the most optimistic scenario it could take
12*18 months to secure approval for the crop under Canada*s Novel Foods
regulations. Roundup Ready wheat would be vetted by the Health and
Environment departments as well as the Canadian Food Inspection Agency,
said Monsanto spokesperson Trish Jordan. Federal officials would have to be
satisfied that the GE wheat is safe for humans, animals and release into
the environment.

*We have to answer a lot of agronomic questions that farmers have about
Roundup Ready wheat.*

* Trish Jordan, Monsanto

Once that approval is gained, Monsanto still has a lot of work to do before
the wheat would be made available commercially, she explained. *We have to
answer a lot of agronomic questions that farmers have about Roundup Ready
wheat such as best management practices and dealing with volunteers. As
well, there would have to be a grain handling system that can handle GE
wheat separately from conventional grains. * We would need a tightly
controlled system, and initially we would not be exporting it through a
port.*

In addition, tolerances would have to be developed to determine how much GE
wheat would be acceptable in conventional varieties and what kind of
testing procedures would be used to detect GE wheat.

Ralph Goodale, the minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board, told
the Commons agriculture committee May 1 that because of the regulatory
process, the government has two to three years *to look at this question
very carefully. We should give it the consideration it deserves. But we
must not waste time doing it.*

GE wheat is a hot topic in Canada. The Canadian Wheat Board says that two
thirds of its foreign customers have said they don*t want it and would be
concerned if it was approved for use in Canada, for fear it would end up in
the grain handling system. The Wheat Board has been working with grain
companies and farm groups on developing a handling system for GE wheat.

The Board has asked the federal government not to approve the registration
of GE wheat or barley unless it is broadly accepted by customers. It also
believes the government should hold off on approving GE varieties until a
system is developed to segregate those strains throughout the production,
handling and transportation supply chain.

So far, the Western Canadian Wheat Growers is the only farm group that has
endorsed Roundup Ready wheat. Monsanto and Agriculture Canada are
collaborating on the development and testing of the product.

* Alex Binkley

Food Chemical News, May 6, 2002, Volume 44, Number 12, CRC Press LLC