Factual situation in agricultural biotechnology in the Czech Republic

Since the birth of recombinant DNA technology in seventies of the last century a variety of regulations occurred. They have been always a function of economy, politics and science. Unfortunately, the latter has plaid minor role.
French presidency declared the revision of biotechnology regulation as one of its priorities. The documents issued for this purpose as well as the document France presented as the reasons for the ban of Bt maize indicate that again politics will play a decisive role regardless the frequency of the word "science" in these documents.
With no regard to Ad hoc working parties and Shepard meetings there are certain facts out of politics power. Let sketch several of those existing in the Czech Republic.

Case one: Bt maize
About 15 hybrids of maize are generally used in CR. Maize grown for silage and feed in 2007 covered 162 thousands ha with average yield 34.4 t/ha, total harvest reaching 5570 thousand metric tonnes. Corresponding values for maize for kernel were 111.7 thousands ha, 6.8 t/ha and 579 thousands metric tonnes. Severe infestation by Ostrinia nubilalis (40 to 70% damaged plants) was registered in 17 districts and penetration to higher attitudes was registered. More than 16 000 ha (officially, in fact more) was sprayed by insecticides (mostly Nurelle D, Decis Mega, Karate Zeon 5 CS and Vaztak 10 SC) with effectiveness 74%. Institute of Entomology and the Research Institute for Crop Production performed three years' field study of insect community in fields of standard (not treated) and Bt maize. No differences were found. The latter institution analyzed the mycotoxine level in maize harvest after various treatments: Bt maize was practically free, after insecticides the reduction of about 70% was observed, similar value was obtained with Trichogramma. Non treated maize contained mycotoxines above hygienic threshold. Diabrotica occurred in many places, until now without significan dmage.

Case two: potato Amflora and the gene nptII.
Potato used to be a traditional crop in many regions of CR: The production dropped to almost half in these years due to the decrease in demand and closing of rural distilleries. The production of food starch is regulated by quotas. Therefore the possibility to produce industrial starch for paper and textile industry was welcomed by farmers and was expected to contribute to the employment in rural regions. Field trials with Amflora were successful.
The political rejection of this crop was great disappointment particularly because of unscientific reasoning (contrary to EFSA) referring to the gene causing the resistance to kanamycin (nptII gene). The Czech order by Ministry of Heaths allows 105 CFU/g in baby food and 107 CFO/g in standard food. As these microorganisms represent mostly soil bacteria their frequency of kanamycine resistance is between 5 to 15 %. This means baby eats several millions of nptII gene daily, adults about thousand times as much in the easily transmittable form. What risk comes from the plant gene when the transfer of gene from plant to bacteria is dubious.

Case three: HT crops.
There are no herbicide tolerant (HT) transgenic crops grown in the CR. Nevertheless the import of gluphosinate ammonium is about 5 metric tonnes a year and the import of glyphosate in last ten years varies around 400 metric tonnes a year, reaching 1000 metric tonnes in 2007. If all soy beans grown in the CR are RR variety, the use of glyphosate would increase by 2%. Standard soy beans in the CR need herbicide treatment with Synfloran 48 EC or Treflan 48 EC, Afalon 45 SC, alternatively Basagran 600 a Blazer 2 S on grown plants. Recently flumioxazin in combination with Dual Gold 960 or Command 36 CS are used.

Case four: food safety.
Searching medical publications in impact journals no health problems due to the transgenosis were found globally despite millions of metric tonnes of GM crops consumed. On the contrary, the recent study at Lisbon University demonstrated that radiation mutants - that are without any control in our food chain - bring more new proteins than transgenic crops. Therefore no health precautions were found necessary.

Case five: public attitude.
Eurobarometer 64.3 (May 2006) indicated that Czech public was most favourable to modern technologies out of all Member States (Fig. 5) with 46% support of GM food (EU 27%). Farmers are very positive to transgenic crops as represented by the several statements of the President of the Czech Agrarian Chamber and by individual farmers growing Bt maize (over 4000 ha in 2007). Media referred to these crops mostly positively except for certain post-communist journalists (arguing against international capital). The Green Party has not used the GMO issue as an election slogan. The national environmentalist organisations do not step against GMO. The only propaganda comes in standard style from Greenpeace. This organisation destroyed one field experiment being afraid that it would document the fictitious propaganda of monarch butterfly. Following this action "unknown culprit" destroyed the whole field of Bt maize. But this was just single incident of anti-GMO "direct action".