Questions for Dr. Hedge about USDA regulations.
How does USD interface with specialty crop growers and consumers?
Dr. Hegde: In fact, once every two years, we hold a workshop shop where people can come and we let them know how to navigate USDA regulations. We give examples and we say that it does not involve a lot of costs to develop these crops. We want to know which crop, let's say a vegetable crop, and I want to change its taste. This is the gene. We locate it and say, we don't think we see a reason for this modified crop to have any regulation, it is good to go.
Marie Abbey: Maybe it would be good just to take a second and contrast that to the really initial regulations that USDA had on specialty crops that might be genetically engineered.
Dr. Hegde: The first regulation came after an accord in 1986. They said you three agencies should regulate these crops. Generally, they used to use agricultural bacteria to transform plants.
Can you explain what a “plant pest risk” is? Is it different from environmental risk?
Dr. Hegde: Most of the time there is not much plant pest risk so, you know, they can get out of regulation without much cost. So yes there is a big difference.
Marie Abbey: Thank you and I think you covered it but maybe you just want to again, define what a plant pest risk is, I think that's an interesting question.
Dr. Hedge: Lots of regulations come from the Plant Protection Act which prevents plant dissemination, and the spread of plant pesticides throughout the U.S. But with biotechnology, what we are saying is that plant pest risk is not really as a real pest, like by modifying a plant, are you increasing a risk to plant, for example, your plant can harbor plant pest, which makes other plants more susceptible, which increases the plant pest risk and also the environmental risk. Whenever an agency takes action, it must investigate the possible consequences of the action. So yes, they are different.