A strain of genetically engineered rice which contaminated the US rice supply this summer has just been approved by the US Dept. of Agriculture (USDA). The GE rice apparently escaped from Bayer CropScience’s test plots after the company decided to abandon the project in 2001.

Once the contamination became known, countries around the world closed their borders to rice imports from the US, sending rice prices plummeting. Farmers have filed a class action lawsuit against Bayer.

The USDA disregarded 15,000 comments from the public opposing the approval. Only 350 comments in favor were received. While most critics agree the rice is safe to eat, the ad-hoc approval sends a message from the USDA to the biotechnology industry - ‘Should you happen to break the rules and contaminate the food supply with your untested GE crops, don’t worry about it - we’ll fix it for you’.

With an regulatory attitude like that, it’s only a matter of time before one of these crops (sometimes referred to as ‘Frankenfoods’) contaminates our food supply with serious consequences. While nobody can predict what would happen with any certainty (which is the VERY best reason to increase regulation) some experts have suggested that engineered crops might contaminate the food supply with drugs, kill beneficial insects, or jeopardize valuable natural resources like Bt toxins. Steps have to be taken to provide stronger federal oversight to prevent our food supply from contamination. Once these crops get out, there’s no putting them back in the box.

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