Government urged to review processes for GMO approval
22 August 2022 |
2:44 am
Public health experts have called on the government to review the processes for approving genetically modified crops in the interest of humanity and the environment
NAFDAC
Public health experts have called on the government to review the processes for approving genetically modified crops in the interest of humanity and the environment
They said this would help protect the population such that consumers would be able to choose what they eat, adding that the regulatory framework should be reviewed like that of India, where about four parastatals participate in the approval process.
They stressed that the approval for GMOs should not only be left in the hands of the National Biosafety Management Agency, saying the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), the Standard Organization of Nigeria (SON) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development should all be part of the approval process.
A molecular biologist, Dr Kashmir Ifeanyi, while speaking at weekend during a one-day workshop for judicial officers at the weekend, expressed concerns that Nigeria had approved several GMOs but the risk assessment was questionable as they were largely predicated on the claims by the applicants, on which Nigeria is supposed to get other opinions about the GM crop before approvals.
He pointed out that, currently Nigeria has approved GM Cassava in two places, there is also the approval and commercial release of BT cotton and BT Beans, adding that early in 2022 the agency also approved herbicide tolerant maize, coupled with the approval of the large scale importation of GM Wheat from Argentina.
He said before approval of the GM wheat for importation, no risk assessment was conducted on the internal organ of the experimental animal as the animal was only assessed physically.
Kashmir stated that the safety of GM crops for human consumption was still subjected to conflicting reports and was very controversial, hence there was no consensus on the safety of GM.
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