The US government Tuesday renewed its approval of genetically modified corn, saying it found no evidence of health or environmental risks, but the decision was immediately denounced by critics of bioengineered foods.
The Environmental Protection Agency decided that corn modified with Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) -- which produces a protein toxic to certain insects -- can be used for another seven years before another review.
"Bt corn has been evaluated thoroughly by EPA, and we are confident that it does not pose risks to human health or to the environment," said Stephen Johnson, assistant EPA administrator.
Environmental groups that had asked the EPA to delay approval of the crops pending further testing immediately criticized the decision.
"I think the EPA has placed the interest of a few biotech companies over the interests of the environment and consumers' health," said Matt Rand, spokesman for the Genetically Engineered Food Alert coalition.
Rand said the EPA failed to conduct adequate testing on potential allergic reactions to Bt corn, and that coalition members would now conduct their own studies.
"The EPA has once again missed the boat, and we are now going to have to take matters into our own hands" on testing, he said.
Critics of the bioengineered corn also said it may harm Monarch butterflies, but the EPA said scientists determined after a two-year study "that Bt corn does not impact Monarch butterfly populations."
Rand said however that this study too was inadequate and that one of the varieties of Bt corn, which was refused renewal, was shown to harm the Monarch.
The companies holding registrations for Bt corn are Monsanto, Syngenta, Pioneer/DuPont and Mycogen/Dow, the EPA said.
Another type of genetically engineered corn, StarLink, was withdrawn earlier this year after the EPA refused to approve it for human consumption.
Although StarLink had been approved for animal feed and industrial use, its maker, Aventis CropScience, had said it could not guarantee that trace elements of the corn would be kept out of the human food chain.
The Bt corn varieties approved for renewed use incorporate genetic material from a naturally occurring soil bacterium that produces a protein toxic to certain insects, which has been used for many years to control insect pests.
Bioengineered corn, which has been used for the past five years in the US, represents about 19 percent of US acreage devoted to corn, according to government figures.
The EPA said companies marketing Bt corn seed "will be required to monitor for the development of insect resistance, provide annual reports on the efficacy of resistance management plans, and implement remedial action plans in the event that resistance is detected among pest populations."
Steve Rosenbloom, marketing director for Monsanto's corn genetics, said Bt corn is beneficial for the growers and the environment because it requires less use of pesticides.
"Crops developed through biotechnology such as corn and cotton are dramatically reducing the pesticides sprayed on crops," he said. "If America's corn and cotton farmers are not spraying millions of pounds of synthetic chemicals, there are less of those chemicals in the environment."
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