The 7th meeting of the Codex Intergovernmental Task Force on Biotechnology (TFBT) was held in Makuhari, Chiba Prefecture, between 24 and 28 September 2007. It was the 3rd year of the 2nd round. The task force discussed 3 subjects. 1) foods derived from GM animals, including GM fish, 2) GM plants with nutritional or health benefits, 3) cases of low level presence of unauthorized GM plant materials in food.

Regarding 1), the task force discussed whether or not to allow antibiotic resistance marker genes to be used, as well as the issue of foods derived from animals treated with GM vaccine. The task force acknowledged the use of antibiotic resistance marker genes on the grounds that the safety of non-antibiotic resistant marker and reporter genes has not yet been confirmed. The use of GM vaccine will be discussed at an expert meeting, and then will be discussed in another codex meeting.

On 2), without thorough discussion of the issue of "substantial equivalence", the task force concluded by adding an annex to the existing Codex Plant guidelines on the safety assessment of foods derived from rDNA plants enhanced for nutritional or health benefits.

Concerning the low level presence of GM plant materials in food where the material is unauthorized in the importing countries, this also will be added as an annex. The term "low level" was not defined at the task force on the grounds that it is not the work of this task force to define such terms. The task force also discussed data and information sharing, and it was decided that there would be a database set up. However the contents have been considerably simplified. The issue concerning protection of developing countries from pressure by exporting countries like the US, when unapproved GM contamination occurs in such countries, has been left unclear.

The task force finalised all its work this year, and therefore no meeting was planned for next year. All the documents produced by the task force will be sent to the Codex Commission planned for July 2008, and after the Commission's approval, member countries will start making their own guidelines on the use of GM animal food products.

See also: Codex Task Force Report and Comments by Consumers Union of Japan

The MEXT working group considering approval of human clone embryo research held a meeting on 13 September 2007, at which the use of fertilized triploid in research was discussed. Thus far (see BJ September 2007) the basic principle has been that only triploid ova that were remaining over following ectosomatic fertility treatments and so on were the subject of discussion, and then only those ova which were to be discarded could be accepted. At this meeting, the discussion was carried a step deeper, and it was agreed that both frozen and not yet frozen ova could be used provided informed consent were obtained. The Cabinet Office Council for Science and Technology Policy final report on the human embryo (completed in July 2004 - see BJ August 2004) defined the human embryo as the "germ of life" and allowed its use in exceptional circumstances, but several members of the working group voiced the opinion this time that the explanation concerning that use had been insufficient. In response, the chair of the working group, Mr. TOYOSHIMA Kumao, research consultant at Riken, brought the discussion to an end by stating, "I think it would be more comprehensible if we were to add that, generally, the possibility of continued (fertilized triploid ova) occurrence is extremely small, and returning this kind of ovum to the uterus may have an adverse effect on the woman concerned."

Promotion of biotech is keynote

The government's "Third National Biodiversity Strategy" was finalized at the end of September 2007. The Strategy defines Japan's overall directions in treating biodiversity issues, based on the "Convention on Biological Diversity", which was first adopted in May 1992, ratified by Japan in May 1993, and which entered into force in December 1993. The first Strategy was published in 1995. It was revised and republished in 2002 as the second Strategy. The new Strategy is a revision of the 2002 Strategy, and will be published in November following solicitation of public comments.

The Third Draft Strategy consists of two parts; Part One: Strategy, and Part Two: Action Plan. The second chapter of Part Two, "Overall Basic Measures" contains a section, section two, "Sustainable Use of Genetic Resources and so on", in which directions for GM crops and biotechnology are set out.

The stated keynote for these, in divergence from the original notion of protecting biodiversity, is the unregulated cultivation of GM crops, and the promotion of biotechnology. If the draft is published as it is, this may well be a strategy for the loss of biodiversity.

Problems of the Draft Strategy

Let's look at several examples. Firstly, in the "Way of Thinking" of section two, the draft states, "Based on developments in biotechnology in recent yearsc the utility value of bio-resources has been enlarged through the breeding of maize with resistance to insect pests, and so on." However, the spread of GM maize with insect pest resistance has resulted in the increase of resistant insect pests, and a reduction in numbers of rare and beneficial species, negative effects being far more prominent than benefits, but this point is not mentioned. The section also states that, "Due to scientific and technological advances in biotechnology and so onc there is the potential for usefulness in solving environmental problems," taking up only beneficial possibilities, with dangers not being mentioned.

In the section on "The Use of Genetic Resources in the Field of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries," the draft states that the government will "promote the creation of new industries by application of results obtained thus far with extremely high yield varieties that reduce production costsc" Environmental concerns and aspects of food safety are not mentioned at all. Concrete measures are taken up under four themes, which are all related to the promotion of biotechnology. No mention at all is given to the most important use of genetic resources, agriculture rooted in the locality, especially organic farming, which through investigations of living things in field has been shown to have a highly beneficial effect on the protection of biodiversity.

In the final "Promotion of Japan's Biofuel Production (Concrete Measures)," only the methods for developing biofuel are mentioned and it is clear that this will not result in activities for the solution of environmental problems.

The logic of substituting the promotion of biotech for the protection of biodiversity, as seen in this draft, can be seen as a potential one-way street to the destruction of the ecosystem.