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Science Media Centre RFI5591 – CONTACTS & MEETINGS WITH THE SCIENCE MEDIA CENTRE From SMC to Defra press office 19 June: Science Media Centre Round-up VERSION 6 EMBARGOED UNTIL Thursday 20th June at 00:01 UK TIME Expert reaction to Owen Patersons speech on GM Mark J Bailey, Director Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, said: We welcome this development and recognise the potential for GM crops as a part of sustainable intensification. Whilst potential benefits may arise we also need to ensure that the use of GM is safe and minimises impact to the environment. The UK Government, industry and the research community share this responsibility for working alongside stakeholders. Professor Giles Oldroyd, research Director, John Innes Centre, said: "Scientists have shown that GM is a precise and safe technology that can deliver benefits to farmers, the environment and human health. Europe is being left behind and this means economic disadvantages to European farmers and continued reliance on old and damaging technologies such as pesticide use. The European position is also influencing GM policies in Africa and this is limiting the application of this very useful technology to small-holder farmers in the developing world." Professor David Boxer, Chief Executive, Institute of Food Research, said: Inexpensive, safe and nutritious foods are needed to feed the worlds growing population and we shouldnt exclude any techniques that may help to solve this massive problem. Genetic modification (GM) is just one of the options to be considered. The Institute of Food Research supports on-going research in GM as it could have a significant role to play in a sustainable, safe food supply in the future and one that can help address important health issues. We welcome the Governments position on this issue. Professor Ottoline Leyser, Director, Sainsbury Laboratory, University of Cambridge, said: "It is time we stopped giving GM the special status of either saviour or demon and got on with improving the safety, security and sustainability of the food supply chain. The problems facing agriculture are urgent and complex. To tackle them effectively will require all the tools available, deployed with all our ingenuity.GM is just one of those tools with strengths and weaknesses, risks and benefits just like all the others. The intense focus on this one tool and the consequent attitude thatEurope has adoptedhave been very damaging, shifting attention away from the real problems and effectively restricting the use of GM to large a few large multinational companies. There is no evidence that GM approaches to crop improvement should be treated any differently from any others. Professor Dale Sanders, Director, John Innes Centre, said: As a scientist I do not advocate any particular technology over another. I wouldlike to see a shift of focus towards the problems that really need attention such as global hunger, malnutrition, environmental pollution and climate change. These are complex problems requiring political, social and logistical solutions, and in many cases science can offer game- changing support. Examples include increasing yield for subsistence farmers in Africa, reducing the environmental impact of agriculture, making foods nutritious or producing more food without encroaching on more land. It is important that we keep our minds on these global challenges. Little we do in life is without accompanying risk. Evaluation of potential scientific solutions to agriculture should be evidence-based, and the overwhelming global conclusion regarding the deployment of GM technologies in the field is that the risks associated with the technologies are infinitesimally small. By contrast, the gains for society and for the environment achieved through the deployment of GM technologies have been enormous. Professor Maurice Moloney, Institute Director and Chief Executive, Rothamsted Research, said: "We are very happy to see clear leadership on this issue from Secretary of State Paterson. GM crops and the use of biotechnology in agriculture has been effectively on hold in Europe for many years. Meanwhile our trading partners, through biotechnology, have improved yields, protected the agricultural environment, reduced pesticide use and created many new jobs. This has been discouraging for British and European science as much of the technology was invented here. The Government's initiative puts the UK back into a leadership position in Europe on this issue and will promote a rational approach to the adoption of technologies that our farmers want and need in order to maintain their competitive position in world agriculture." Douglas Kell, BBSRC Chief Executive, said: "BBSRC welcomes this signal of support for world-class UK bioscience and the possibilities it offers for agri-science, the economy and society. "GM is one tool in a range of options that can help us to tackle complex problems, such as the need to produce enough food for a growing population with fewer inputs. "BBSRC supports a range of approaches to tackling these problems as we believe a broad strategy will allow the most appropriate technique to be used depending on the challenge and the circumstance. In some cases, a GM approach could offer a way forward and without it we would risks blocking a solution to major global issues. "This signal of support helps to keep doors open that could help us in an ever-changing future." Note to editors The Science Media Centre is an independent venture working to promote the voices, stories and views from the scientific community to the news media when science is in the headlines. Over 80 supporters including scientific institutions, media groups, charities, universities, corporate organisations and individuals fund the Centre, with donations capped at 5% of the running costs to preserve its independence. This press release contains the personal opinions of those acknowledged, and represents neither the views of the SMC nor any other organisation unless specifically stated. The Science Media Centre can also help you find an expert on a topical area of science, we have over 2000 media friendly scientists and engineers on our database and you can call us on 020 7611 8300 if you need an expert to interview. For more details see our website www.sciencemediacentre.org, please e-mail the Science Media Centre with your comments on our service at [email protected] Science Media Centre is a registered charity (no. 1140827) and a company limited by guarantee (no. 7560997). Registered in England and Wales Defra press office to SMC 19 June- SMC was sent this list supplied by the GM Team: SMC should already have these earmarked, but my candidates would be: Ian Crute, AHDB Chief Scientist Jonathan Jones, Sainsbury Laboratory David Baulcombe, Royal Society & Cambridge Uni. Dept of Plant Science Cathie Martin, John Innes Centre Tina Barsby, NIAB CEO Maurice Moloney, Rothamsted Research _____________________________________________ Note from Defra press office to GM team 19 June: Weve had a request from the Science Media Centre for the names of any scientists who might be keen to contribute to the GM debate any ideas from your end on who would be good? Thanks .
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