| The Indonesian Agricultural
Biotechnology and Genetic Resources Research Agency In Bogor,
Indonesia in collaboration with FAO-RAP Project (GCP/RAS/185
JPN) on Capacity Building in Biosafety of GM Crops conducted
the National Training Workshop on Food Safety of GM Crops
from August 8-9, 2004. A total of 60 stakeholders coming from
various places in Indonesia attended the workshop. The participants
s were composed of researchers at national research institutes
and universities, plant quarantine officers, food and drug
agency officers, media people.
Food security emerged as one of the central important issues
in Indonesia’s agricultural development framework. In
light of potential advances that biotechnology offers, the
government of Indonesia identified biotechnology as the main
tool to support national development, especially in industry
and environment, agriculture and marine, medical and pharmaceutical
fields. Research and development of agricultural biotechnology
in Indonesia covered activities on crop improvement (marker
assisted breeding and transgenic), food fermentation, tissue
culture, application (micro propagation, protoplast fusion
and secondary metabolite production) and biofertilizer /biopesticide.
In Indonesia, there are two types of biotechnology products
consumed by the public- non-genetically engineered product
that is mainly dominated by fermented food and the suspected
genetically engineered products. Most of fermented food which
originally produced traditionally by local farmers are unpacked
products and are not regulated. One of the most important
fermented foods is “Tempe” (fermented soybean).
The fermented food and other soybean products (such as tofu)
are the important protein sources for most of Indonesian people.
Unfortunately, the country’s soybean production could
not meet the national demand that Indonesia has to import
soybean from other countries, mainly the US (80%). Since almost
70% of US soybean production is GM and the soybean is imported
in bulk, it is being suspected that the imported soybeans
available in the local market are genetically modified. However,
until this time, Indonesia is yet to complete the development
of food safety assessment regulations.
The two day activity which involved an open house and a
national training workshop were conducted with the main goal
of familiarizing the concerned stakeholders on the principles
and procedures of food safety assessment and labeling. The
workshop itself has the specific objectives of 1) reviewing
scientific risk assessment; 2) introducing the technology
on GMO detection to some stakeholders; 3) socializing the
labeling procedure of GM food.
The open house was specifically conducted in conjunction
with anniversary celebration of the Center. It enabled the
public to have a rare insight as to the activities that scientists
are doing in their secluded laboratories especially in the
field of modern biotechnologies. Not only the laboratories
were opened to the public but there were also displays and
exhibits of all the activities of the different national research
agencies especially in the field of crop production and development.
The following topics were presented and discussed during
the workshop: Detection of GMO in Food by Prof. Antonius Suwanto
of Bogor Agricultural University; Principles of Food Safety
Assessment of GM Foods by Prof.Dedi Fardiaz of the National
Agency for Drug and Food Control; Allergenicity Assessment
on Food Derived from GM Crops by Prof. Maggy Thenawidjaja
Suhartono; Nutritional and Safety Assessment of GM Foods by
Prof. Deddy Muchtadi of Bogor Agricultural University; Status
of GM Food Approval in SE-Asia/Asia/World by Dr. Flerida S.
Cariño of the Universityty of the Philippines; and,
Consumer Attitudes toward Agricultural Biotechnology by Dr.
Dave Schmidt of the International Food Information Council
and Foundation.
The workshop came out with the following conclusions and
recommendations:
Conclusions:
- Key component of biosafety is risk assessment and management.
- Well trained and knowledgeable people are essential.
- Government and industry communications on food biotechnology
must be consistent in order to earn consumer confidence.
- It is important to stress that food biotechnology also
provides important benefits in addressing hunger and food
security throughout the world.
- GM foods have now reached our doors and tables, with or
without our approval.
- To date, the safety assessment has been based on the principle
that GM Foods can be compared with traditional foods that
have an established history for safe use.
- Safety assessment of GM Foods: to determine whether the
GM Foods is considered to be safe for human consumption.
- Mandatory labeling of GM products is applied based on
the threshold level (maximum level of GM products in foods,
is 5%), set up by the government.
- Types of GMO assays: immunoassay, conventional PCR, Real-time
PCR.
- Allergens are protein but not all proteins are allergen.
- Allergenic reactions depend on individual.
Recommendations:
- Food safety assessment and regulations on Foods derived
from GM crops need to be established in Indonesia.
- National capacities in Indonesia for the development of
human resources, research and technology, legislation, regulations,
policies and programmes for food safety need to be strengthened.
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