Biotechnology has become a crucial means in the pursuit of global food security since conventional crop improvement alone cannot guarantee human nutritional needs, a new report has stated.
The 2012 Global Status Report on Commercialized Biotechnology and Genetically Modified (GM) Crops, which was launched in Accra recently, recommended that though biotechnology was not the solution to the world’s growing food insecurity problem, it could assist in enhancing and addressing food security.
Put together by International Services for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA), it was launched by Professor Walter Alhassan, Coordinator of the Project on Strengthening Capacity for Safe Biotechnology Management in Sub-Saharan Africa (SABIMA).
According to him, no single approach could be adopted to feed the world’s projected population of 9 billion by 2050 hence the report which highlights awareness creation on biotechnology, progress so far made and challenges which ought to be addressed to specifically promote the use of biotechnology and competently address global agriculture needs.
Pundits have de-glorified biotechnology globally but the technology in essence seeks to use living organisms to produce products or services such as tools of tissue culture, molecular characterization for identification purposes in plant breeding, diagnostics, fermentation and genetic engineering, among others.
Even though it could help in providing food security, critics have argued that certain organisations that were crusading for the adoption of genetically modified foods could make billions from countries since they could be the sole source of plant seeds for supply to farmers.
Prof Alhassan added that the lack of appropriate science-based and cost, as well as time effective regulatory systems continue to be the major constraint to adoption and called for a responsible, rigorous but not onerous, regulation for small and poor developing countries.
About 170.3 million hectares of biotech crops were grown globally in 2012 at an annual growth rate of 6 per cent, up to 10.3 million from 160 million hectares in 2011.
On Ghana’s situation, he said the National Bio-safety Bill was passed into law in 2010 allowing the technology to be implemented in Ghana.
To this end, the National Bio Safety Committee has received three applications which would be considered for approval to undertake Confined Field Trials (CFTs) at designated locations in the country.
Dr Emmanuel Chamba, a scientist with the Savanna Agricultural Research Institute, in a remark, called on Ghanaian authorities to embrace the new technology to help boost agricultural production.
Emelia Gansah, an official of the Ghana Farmers Association, also in a speech, said negotiations were ongoing between farmers from Ghana and Burkina Faso on the benefits of certain GM crops the former could take advantage of.
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