USDA asked to withdraw approval of biotech squash

By PHILIP BRASHER
The Associated Press
4/26/00 1:50 PM

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Environmental groups asked the
government Wednesday to withdraw its approval of
genetically engineered squash because of concerns that
it could cross with a wild relative and make it a hardier
weed.

The squash is modified to make it resistant to plant
viruses. A recent study by the National Academy of
Sciences questioned whether the Agriculture Department
had considered adequately whether the virus resistance
could spread from the squash to its wild cousin, which
is a pest to farmers in some southern states.

In a petition to USDA, the groups said the squash case
showed that the department's process for approving
genetically engineered crops is inadequate. In addition
to seeking withdrawal of the squash, the petition asked the
agency to require more testing and analysis of biotech
crops, depending on the potential environmental risk.

"Given the potential risks of these crops nationally and
abroad and the unique role that U.S. regulators play
internationally, ... it is essential that USDA adopt a
scientifically sound and systematic approach to
regulating the potential ecological risks associated with
genetically engineered crops," the petition said.

USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
regulates field testing of genetically engineered
plants. It later decides whether they can be released commercially
on information provided by the company about the plant
and its potential effects on the environment.

"We currently have a process for carefully reviewing
these products, but we are always willing to look at new data
and ways to improve the process and will carefully study the
petition," USDA spokeswoman Susan McAvoy said.

A former APHIS geneticist, who now represents the
biotech industry, said the department demands sufficient
data from companies to determine whether new crops are
safe for the environment. The department "does not defer
to agribusiness to decide which tests are necessary," said
Val Giddings of the Biotechnology Industry Organization.

The two squash varieties, developed by the Asgrow Seed
Co., were approved in 1994 and 1996 after the agency
decided that the crop was unlikely to increase weed
problems. The National Academy of Sciences study said
longer-term studies were needed to support the USDA's
conclusion.

"Restricting the areas where the squash can be initially
grown would be preferable to unconditional deregulation,
at least until more data are available," said the academy's
study, which was released earlier this month.

Giddings, who worked on the squash approval while at
USDA, conceded the agency "did not have perfect
knowledge" about the ecological impact, but said there
was sufficient data to approve the crop and that "no one
has identified any negative consequences to the
environment."

Moreover, squash have also been made virus-resistant
through conventional breeding methods that are not
subject to the review process required of biotech varieties,
Giddings said.

The National Academy of Sciences study was a broad
review of the government's regulation of pest-protected
crops. The academy is doing a separate study of USDA's
regulatory process at the request of Agriculture
Secretary Dan Glickman.

In addition to NRDC, other groups signing the petition
included Greenpeace, Sierra Club, Environmental Defense
and the Union of Concerned Scientists.