From the raw grain stored in the open storage of China Grain Store to the fire, to the cadmium rice in Hunan, and the recent doubt of genetically modified rice, the safety of rice, which is the staple food of more than half of the Chinese people, has faced unprecedented tests. In this issue, reporters went to Anhui, Hunan and other places to trace the source of the "legendary" genetically modified rice and cadmium rice. At the same time, the relevant departments are also acting. Allowing consumers to enjoy safe and reliable rice is becoming a consensus among all walks of life.
How far is GMO rice from us? A Greenpeace's GMO test report that appeared online in April this year made the answer look less optimistic.
In this report issued from February to July 2012, Greenpeace targeted rice, rice flour, baby food, soybeans that may contain genetically modified ingredients in Beijing, Hubei, Anhui, Guangdong, Sichuan, Jiangsu, Fujian and Zhejiang. , Soy products and quick-frozen foods were randomly sampled, and a total of 76 samples were purchased and sent to third-party laboratories for genetically modified ingredient testing.
The test results showed that 9 samples were positive, 6 of which contained transgenic rice. In other words, the detection rate of illegal genetically modified components has reached 7.9%. The problem samples are: 4 transgenic rice samples taken from Wuhan, Hubei and Lu'an, Anhui, detected transgenic components and confirmed as Bt63 transgenic rice.
According to public information, Bt63 transgenic rice is the research result of academician Zhang Qiqiu and other scientists from Huazhong Agricultural University. The researchers introduced the Bt gene into rice plants and then obtained the insect-resistant "Shanyou 63" hybrid combination.
This kind of Bt transgenic rice, after introducing a special gene into rice, will produce Bt protein, this protein will cause the rice borer that eats this rice to cause intestinal paralysis and die. It is such a special anti-insect function that can reduce the use of pesticides in rice, thereby achieving the purpose of increasing yield. According to previous media reports, due to the relationship between Huazhong Agricultural University and Hubei, in the previous period, the cultivation of genetically modified plants in Hubei and other places has been very extensive. However, this is the first time that Anhui has been involved in genetically modified rice. This has caused the outside world to throw great doubts about the current rice cultivation situation in Lu'an and other places in Anhui. Shou County conducts field survey interviews.
However, compared to those “visible†GM rice violations, Anhui samples are more difficult and complicated.
Two test results
On March 10, 2012, the staff of Greenpeace purchased the Sanfeng Fengyou You Rice and Zhou Ji at the South Gate of Mantianxing Supermarket in Anhui, the Xingmei Store of Xishang Convenience Dishes, and the Liuji Grain and Oil Store Zhai refined rice and sapling rice were sampled and tested. The results showed that all three rice showed NOS and Bt63 positive, which means that all three rice were products of Bt63 transgenic rice.
The reporter learned that all three of the detected rice containing genetically modified ingredients were from Lu'an Shou County area. Except that Sanliang Fengliang You could not find the manufacturer, the other two were marked from Zhouzhai rice noodles in Shou County. Limited company.
According to the 2012 economic statistics of the local government, Shouxian's GDP was 10.53 billion yuan last year, of which the added value of the primary industry was 3.84 billion yuan, accounting for the largest proportion of the local economy, and the rice planting area was as high as 109.5 thousand hectares, which is the same as wheat It is the largest food cash crop in Shou County.
With the reliance on the primary industry, Shou County, which has 25 townships, is covered by nearly 100 rice production and processing enterprises. In the local area, Zhouzhai Rice Noodle Co., Ltd. (Zhouzhai Rice Factory) is definitely not a conspicuous one. . In fact, the reporter can hardly find any relevant corporate information and address content on the Internet. After many directions and explorations by the locals, the reporter of this newspaper finally found it on a dirt road in southern Shou County. Business enterprise-Zhouzhai Rice Factory.
"We have no way of knowing how the rice produced in the factory will have genetically modified ingredients." Faced with an interview with this newspaper, Wu Kunshan, the owner of the rice factory, looked dazed.
Wu Kunshan's rice factory was established in 2004. The area of ​​the factory is not large. In addition to two or three processing workshops, there are several warehouses for stacking rice. Wu Kunshan said that due to the numerous local rice factories and fierce competition, his rice factory has been in a state of half-stop. "There are too many competitors, the rice can't be harvested. We started the work for half a year and stopped for half a year. The business has not been very good. It's about 20-30 tons per month, but a few hundred tons a year."
After the above-mentioned Greenpeace GMO test report appeared on the Internet in April this year, Wu Kunshan's "clear leisure" business status was instantaneously broken. On the afternoon of April 19, the Shouxian County Agricultural Committee raided the Zhouzhai Rice Factory.
Li Jun, head of the Shou County Agricultural Committee Law Enforcement Brigade, told this reporter: "We are a grain county, and the emergence of genetically modified materials is very sensitive, so as soon as we saw the news on the Internet in April, we immediately went to their factory, completely Haven't greeted any random spot checks in the past. "
The samples inspected by the local agricultural committee are the exposed rice and rice seedlings. "Three samples were taken from each of them. I signed it, and the other party signed it, and then sealed it. Two samples were taken by the Agricultural Committee, one was kept, one was sent for inspection, and one was left for the rice factory. If you have any objections, you can use the one you have to re-examine. "Li Jun recalled the procedure at the time.
According to the inspection report and sampling evidence provided by the Agricultural Committee of Shou County, the reporter saw that the production date of the sample was April 12, 2013, and the sampling quantity was 500 grams per copy. The Shou County Agricultural Commission entrusted the Hefei Testing Center of the Ministry of Agriculture to supervise and inspect the composition of genetically modified biological products of the Ministry of Agriculture. The latter is the only genetic testing party authorized by the Ministry of Agriculture in Anhui.
In the column of the test result, the reporter saw that the result was expressed as "the CaMV35S promoter, NOS terminator and Bt gene were not detected in the sample, and the test result was negative." In other words, the transgenic component was not detected.
However, it should be noted that the production date of the sampling of the Shou County Agricultural Committee this time is April 12 this year, and the sample tested by Greenpeace was produced before March 10 last year.
In this regard, Li Jun admitted that the rice tested last year and this year could not be a batch. "Because rice has a certain shelf life, it will be produced when the enterprise is sold. The factory's inventory has not been stored for so long. When we went, it was this batch. The rice at the beginning of last year is now gone."
According to reporters, the current rice planting area in Shouxian area is as high as 109,500 hectares, which is the largest food cash crop in the region along with wheat. According to Wu Kunshan, owner of Zhouzhai Rice Factory and local growers, local consumption is relatively limited, so rice in Shou County is mainly sold to the urban area of ​​Lu'an. Most rice plants in Shou County are small workshop-like processing plants, lacking large leading enterprises. According to the information provided by the Shou County Grain Bureau, most of the local agricultural leading enterprises are oil companies and soy products companies. None of the rice companies are selected.
Invisible source of pollution
The two different test results made the incident look like a "headless injustice case". What is even more thorny and worrying is whether there is any cultivation of genetically modified rice in Lu'an Shou County? If so, how will they affect consumers? How do they flow into production?
Wu Kunshan told reporters that there is no self-cultivated land in the factory, and all the processed rice is purchased from the Shou County area, but who can grow genetically modified rice, he cannot know that the rice factory only manages the harvest.
According to the verification results of Greenpeace, two types of rice produced by Zhouzhai Rice Factory last year were identified as Bt63 transgenic rice, and on August 17, 2009, the Ministry of Agriculture approved two types of rice-"Bt Shanyou 63" And "Huahui No. 1" genetically modified production application safety certificate, but this does not mean that allows commercial cultivation and sales.
Bt Shanyou 63 is the scientific research result inspired by Professor Zhang Huazhong of Huazhong Agricultural University. As early as June 5, 2004, Zhang Qiqiu pointed out at an academic report meeting of the Chinese Academy of Sciences that genetically modified crops have been planted in large areas around the world for 9 years, and more than one billion people have consumed genetically modified foods. Any evidence that genetically modified food is not safe.
However, this conclusion has not been convinced by the academic community. Zheng Fengtian, deputy dean of the School of Agriculture and Rural Development of Renmin University of China, pointed out that whether genetically modified foods are safe is irresponsible only based on the current short-term animal experiment data. It usually appears after 20 to 30 years of use.
For example, Clenbuterol has been vigorously promoted as a new technology when it first appeared. It was only after 20 years of use that it was found to be too toxic and was banned; DDT (Monsanto was once the largest producer of DDT) was also due to the effect when it first appeared The miraculous was promoted vigorously, and it was banned after 30 years that it was found to harm the entire ecosystem.
"For so many years before, genetically modified rice has never happened here. Not to mention that in Shou County, Anhui has never heard of such a thing. The main local rice varieties are Xinqiang 8, Liangyou 6326, Liang All of them are certified varieties in Anhui Province, but to be honest, no one can guarantee that there is no foreign (genetically modified) rice seeds to bring this kind. "Wu Kunshan said.
The characteristic of Bt63 transgenic rice is insect resistance. In some areas, it is called "seed resistant seeds" or "seeds without drugs". According to this seed characteristic, the reporters were in several villages in the northern and southern areas of Shou County. A visit investigation was conducted.
However, the local farmer answered almost uniformly: "Where is the rice that resists insects? All have to be sprayed."
A farmer near Shouchun Township told reporters that from rice transplanting to harvesting, a season of rice generally needs insecticide-resistant pesticides 4 to 5 times. The average cost of an acre of land is more than 100 yuan.
The local seed shop also expressed "unclear" about genetically modified rice and insect-resistant rice. "I have never heard any insect-resistant seeds here. You need to buy them. I only have some upland rice seeds," said the owner of a seed shop.
Other businesses expressed their vigilance: "Do you want to resist insect rice? You are not here to investigate?"
Greenpeace Yu Jiangli, who is in charge of the above-mentioned genetically modified investigation project, told reporters that in fact, it is impossible to simply use the amount of pesticides to determine whether a plant is genetically modified, because after a period of time, genetically modified varieties may not necessarily reduce the use of pesticides because it will Promotes the growth of secondary pests.
This is like Darwin ’s theory of survival of the fittest, where a pest is suppressed and new insect populations will quickly replace it.
Wei Wei, a researcher at the Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, told reporters: "There are 2 channels for transgenic diffusion, pollen and seeds. Transgenes can spread to nearby areas through pollen (the pistils and stamens of rice), and the process of seed production is the result of pollen and polyheads , The division of the stamens and the gathering of the pistils form an embryo. Rice also has pollen, which is a hermaphrodite flower. Pollen spreads through air, water, and insects. So it is not ruled out that you do not plant, but there are other species nearby, and then spread to you. . "
However, the probability of causing pollution through pollen transmission is relatively small, and the other case is that the people themselves do not know that they are now genetically modified rice. "For example, if you have planted genetically modified rice on a piece of land, and then planted normal rice, there may be mixed phenomenon. The second year is still genetically modified, but the farmers themselves do not know."
In a field interview, a villager said that there had been trials of "insect-preventing seeds" in the local area, but the experiment was unsuccessful in the end, but he heard that the seed was hybrid rice, not a genetically modified variety.
Regulatory attempt
Now that the sales volume of Zhouzhai Rice Factory has plummeted, Wu Kunshan said that he does not want to be involved in the storm. Because of this, the sales volume of Rice Factory has fallen by 50%.
"What I can do now is to require that every household must have a" real name system "when collecting rice. Which rice must be registered with the household, how many pounds are bought, and if there is a problem later, it can be traced back; in addition, I must Ask the other party to take the voucher invoice for the purchase of rice seeds, not regular rice seeds will not be accepted. "
In fact, the local seed supply chain has its own unique access methods and processes. According to an interview with reporters, there are 27 seed companies in the Shou County area. These seed companies are the main channel for the introduction of external seeds in the local area. The local government focuses on the target.
Generally speaking, before the annual seed supply, the local agricultural committee organizes experts to hold meetings to evaluate the newly introduced varieties.
"We will ask the other party to report all the varieties planned to be introduced this year to the Agricultural Committee, and the government will check to see which ones are legally qualified and which ones are not. We will exclude the illegal things on the first level." Local An official from the Agricultural Committee said.
After passing the first audit, these 27 seed companies will distribute the new varieties to the lower 500-600 seed retail stores, distributed in 25 local towns. But no one can guarantee whether the 27 companies have fully registered all the varieties and whether they will keep them secretly.
Li Jun, head of the law enforcement team of the Shou County Agricultural Commission, said that the seed sales season is generally in April, so in March, we had a total of 10 people in the law enforcement team, and the soldiers were divided into two roads from south to north, and each family went to the seed store. Observe unannounced visits.
"I asked the shop owner directly, he might have refused to talk about it, so we will ask other shop owners, if anyone is doing this (genetically modified) business, they will definitely disclose it to you because they are Competition. The Agricultural Committee sends out leaflets every year to tell the shop owner that if he finds genetically modified sales, the penalty is 50,000. Let him know that it is not worth the risk. "
Li Jun admitted that there have been some speculations and reselling of some experimental varieties in the past, but none of them are genetically modified.
In 2010, shortly after the Minister of Agriculture Han Changfu took office, he launched a special seed law enforcement action called "the largest in history". Over one-fifth of the seed companies were ordered to rectify within a time limit, and over one-tenth The certificate was cancelled. According to the summary of the Ministry of Agriculture, a major breakthrough in law enforcement this time was the first genetic testing and punishment measures were taken against violators.
At that time, dozens of samples from the Shou County area were sampled and handed over to the Anhui Provincial Agricultural Committee, and then transferred to the Ministry of Agriculture for testing, but the results were no problem.
But even so, the local agricultural committee is still a difficult problem for GM supervision. "GM rice and ordinary rice cannot be distinguished by the naked eye, but the conventional items only include moisture, germination rate, pressure, purity and other indicators, excluding genetically modified tests. The latter has a long testing period and is expensive. The cost of one time is 1,500 yuan, and our annual law enforcement funding is only 60,000. Now there are so many rice varieties on the market, you ca n’t afford it. " Li Jun said this when discussing the possible inclusion of conventional items.
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