From Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-marcia-ishiieiteman/golden-rice-not-so-golden_b_3882900.html
Dr. Marcia Ishii-Eiteman
09/12/2013
Last month, a few news outlets carried a story about Filipino farmers trampling a test plot of genetically engineered (GE) “Golden Rice.” The news triggered a swift avalanche of more stories and opinion pieces, with ample space devoted to Golden Rice proponents’ harsh accusation that skeptics and critics are holding back a desperately needed, promising technology and, in so doing, are causing children’s deaths around the world.
We’ve seen all this before: both the promises that ultimately fail to deliver, and the attempts to silence those asking important questions. Why, after 30 years of research and millions of dollars poured into development of this supposed miracle seed, are we still talking about Golden Rice?
In reality, there is no new news here: Golden Rice is no closer to solving the complex societal and public health problems underlying micronutrient deficiencies than before (I’ll get into that below). We are simply getting bombarded again with the same broken promises from industry and the same prickly defensive reaction from GE scientists that play out in the mainstream media with some regularity. Having written on this topic years ago, I share Marion Nestle’s frustration with the “broken record” nature of this old argument.
But can it deliver?
Golden Rice is promoted as a technological intervention that can reduce Vitamin A Deficiency (VAD), a type of malnutrition that can cause blindness, stunting and even death. The yellow-tinted rice is touted as a way to help vulnerable populations fight VAD by delivering beta-carotene, a carotenoid which, under the right conditions, the body can convert into Vitamin A.
Can Golden Rice really accomplish this laudable goal in an efficient and effective way, or at least contribute enough to the battle against VAD to justify its expense? In considering this, it’s important to get to the bottom of the following questions:
- After storing and cooking, will there be sufficient carotenoid levels left in Golden Rice to have an impact?
- How much remaining carotenoid will actually be “bioavailable” for already malnourished bodies to convert?
- And are there likely, unintended health and safety risks associated with consuming Golden Rice?
We don’t know the answers to these questions, in large part because the necessary studies have not been completed (two flawed and controversial studies notwithstanding). Or if they have been conducted, they have not been published or released for public and independent scientific scrutiny. What we do know suggests that there are still pretty significant hurdles to be overcome by the Golden Rice developers, if their product is to have any relevance.
Continue reading at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-marcia-ishiieiteman/golden-rice-not-so-golden_b_3882900.html
