Tokyo Metropolitan Government announced the results of its GM food survey on 27 May 2010. The purpose of the survey was twofold; to check that the contamination of GM crops in foods labeled �gGM crop free�h did not exceed the rate of 5% and to check that no unapproved GM crops were present in the foods.

For the former survey, 74 samples of the two crops, maize and soy, were surveyed and 87 samples of processed foods, including tofu and cornstarch, were surveyed, the total number of samples surveyed being 161. The results show that 24 samples were found to be positive, 1 crop sample and 23 processed food samples. However, the announcement said that all of these were under the 5% contamination rate and thus posed no problem. Further, in the latter survey, it was announced that 89 samples were investigated, but no untoward GM material was detected. However, the varieties tested for in the investigation were only Bt rice, Starlink maize, Bt10 maize and GM papaya, LL rice and others which have been a problem due to illegal distribution not being included.

A meeting of the food labeling sub-committee of the Consumer Commission was held on 25 May 2010, at which the question of the labeling of the GM papaya approved by the safety assessment was discussed (See BJ May 2010). Since this was the first time that a food eaten raw had been approved, the spotlight was focused on how it would be handled, but the secretariat simply indicated that the labeling should be handled within the framework of the current labeling system. Opinions demanding a stricter labeling regime were voiced by some committee members, but these opinions were essentially ignored.

A herbicide resistant GM maize was sown in an isolated field in the National Institute of Livestock and Grassland Science in Tochigi Prefecture on 2 June 2010. The herbicide to be used on this maize is an aryloxyalkanoate type herbicide. This research is commissioned by Dow Chemicals Japan. The biodiversity assessment was carried out last year and this year a productivity comparison and so on with non-GMO maize is being carried out.

On 14 May 2010, MEXT publicized two contraventions of the Cartagena biosafety laws. The first was that Hokkaido University allowed a GM mouse to escape in January this year. The mouse was recaptured the following day, avoiding major problems, but this has brought into sharp relief the sloppy management of GM animals in universities, where there have been a series of contraventions (See BJ May 2010).

In addition, in March this year, the Eizai Tsukuba Research Institute in Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture discarded waste material containing a GM virus. This was also said to have been recovered and handled in the proper manner by the contracted waste disposal company, leading to no serious problem.

The independent administrative entity National Institute of Agrobiological Sciences announced on 25 May 2010 that it had sequenced the entire genome of the representative Japanese rice variety, Koshihikari. The base sequence differed from the variety Nihonbare in 67,051 locations, and at the same time it was also announced that the origin of Koshihikari had been clarified.

A meeting of the MHLW Health Science Council was held on 17 May 2010 at which was publicized a new application for the implementation of a gene therapy program by the Chiba University Hospital See BJ April 2010 and June 2009). The illness to be treated will be the congenital lipid metabolism abnormality LCAT (lecithin-cholesterol acyltransferase) deficiency syndromes and a retrovirus will be used as the vector. LCAT is the enzyme involved in the metabolism of cholesterol, which is produced in the liver. Using a vector, the LCAT gene is introduced into adipose cells taken from subcutaneous tissue of the patient , these cells then being autografted back into the patient�fs body in order to have the gene express itself. Three patients are due to receive the treatment, and if implemented this will be the world�fs first gene therapy treatment for LCAT deficiency syndromes. The Chiba University program will now be screened by the gene therapy working group.