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[SANET-MG] letter to editor



October 20, 2004

Prof. Joe Cummins

Professor Emeritus of Genetics

738 Wilkins Street

London,Ontario N6C4Z9

Canada

Telephone 519 681 5477

The Editor

Honolulu Advertiser

letters@honoluluadvertiser.com <mailto:letters@honoluluadvertiser.com>

Dear Editor,

I am replying to the letter of Prof. Andrew Hashimoto, Dean of CTAHR “How UH Helped Save Hawaii's Papayas” From the Honolulu Advertiser, Sunday October 17th. In particular the comment “Under USDA regulations, fruit from non-GM papaya that has been cross-pollinated by GM pollen can be sold as

organic if the grower can document that, except for

the cross-pollination, the crop was grown according to

organic standards and that every effort was made to

avoid cross-pollination”.

Professor Hashimoto did not indicate that the University of Hawaii or
the patent holders of genetically modified papaya (Cornell University,
Seminis Vegetable Seeds, Inc. and United States Department of
Agriculture (USDA) along with a number of individuals from those
organizations) had made any effort to arrange compensation for growers
of conventional or organic papaya who had been deprived of income from
pollution by GM-pollen from the GM crops. Instead USDA has made a
peculiar regulation that the polluted papaya fruit can be marketed as
organic produce because the meat of the fruit is not polluted , only the
seed of the fruit is polluted. However, the reported USDA judgment
ignores the known fact that papaya seed is edible and consumed by many
along with the meat of the fruit. USDA should, I believe, avoided an
obvious conflict of interest and turned to opinion of potential
importers of “organic” papaya.

Patents on GM papaya include the following US patents
5,877,403;6,002,072;6,046,384;6,750,382 ;6,005,166;pp12,481;pp 12,480.
These patents are public information.

Prof. Hashimoto has suggested that the GM papaya are free of adverse
health effects. My article “Allergenic GM Papaya Scandal” in science in
society 2003, 18, 32 reviewed a peer reviewed science article indicating
that the GM papaya included a protein implicated as an allergen. That
report should, ( according to United states EPA regulation) have
triggered an extensive experimental study on allergen properties of the
GM papaya. However, no such study seems to have been done.

In conclusion, as a patentee of GM papaya USDA should not be making
regulations that designate GM papaya to be “organic”. A proper
regulatory organization should be formed to appropriately regulate GM
crops and field testing in Hawaii. USDA should participate in a program
to compensate those suffering financial loss from GM pollution.

Sincerely, Prpf. Joe Cummins



letter to editor

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