March 16, 2004
Conference to Explore Genetically Modified
Food
EVANSTON, Ill. --- Genetically modified (GM) food is not the rare
exception to the rule many of us assume it is.
Last year
roughly 75 to 80 percent of the soybeans and 30 to 35 percent
of the corn grown in the United States were genetically
modified. Despite the spread of GM crops in the nation’s
fields, a key question persists: Are genetically modified foods
good for us?
A distinguished
panel of experts will discuss -- in plain English, for nonscientists
-- the scientific, ethical and legal issues surrounding
genetically modified food at an outreach program, “Biotechnology
and the New Nature of Food,” Saturday, April 3, at Northwestern
University.
The free conference will be from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Owen
L. Coon Forum, 2001 Sheridan Road, Evanston. Doors open at 9:30
a.m. (The conference also will be Webcast live.)
Proponents
of GM food argue for the agricultural benefits of modified plants,
such as their higher crop yields and reduced need
for pesticides and herbicides. Other advocates of biotech agriculture
envision plants programmed to produce therapeutic drugs or vaccines.
Opponents argue that inserting foreign genes into plants -- a process “nature” never
intended -- could disturb the environment in unpredictable ways,
threaten biodiversity, or yield substances that could harm the
health of humans or farm animals.
Designed to help nonscientists, students and the average citizen
think about and better understand this controversial and important
topic, the Northwestern conference will examine questions such
as how plants are engineered to produce genetic modifications,
who benefits from these modifications, what the economic impact
of GM food is and how GM food is regulated for safety. The audience
will have an opportunity to pose their own questions to the panel.
The specific topics and speakers follow:
“Biotechnology in Agriculture,” Martina
Newell-McGloughlin, director, University of California Systemwide
Biotechnology Research
and Education Program
“Why Designer Foods Are Unlikely to Solve Nutritional Health
Problems and Might Create More of Them,” Gary Nabhan, director,
Center for Sustainable Environments, Northern Arizona University
“Safety Assessment of Pesticidal Proteins in Food Crops,” Chris
Wozniak, biologist and biopesticide specialist, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency
“New Science and the Myths of Agricultural Biotechnology,” Charles
Benbrook, agricultural, regulatory and biotechnology policy consultant
A panel discussion will follow the individual presentations.
“Biotechnology and the New Nature of Food” is the
fourth in a series of annual public outreach programs focusing
on developments in the life sciences. The conference is organized
by Northwestern’s department of neurobiology and physiology.
For additional information, call (847) 491-5521 or visit the
conference Web site at http://www.northwestern.edu/science-outreach,
which includes speaker bios, information on the live Webcast, and
directions to the event. |