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It is not technically possible to distinguish between GM and non-GM soya oil as it does not contain any DNA material.

NEW DELHI, April 3

THE Indian Vegetable Oil Processors Association (IVOPA) has termed the Agriculture Ministry's proposed move to restrict imports of genetically modified (GM) soyabean oil as being ``neither technically feasible nor legally sustainable or commercially desirable''.

Briefing newspersons here on Wednesday, the Executive Director of IVOPA, Mr D.N. Pathak, said currently around 85 lakh tonnes (lt) of soya oil was being traded in the world and not a single country had banned or restricted imports on account of it being made out of GM soyabeans.

``Even United Kingdom and Japan, which have put in place regulations for labelling of GM food items, including soyabeans, have specifically exempted edible oils from this requirement. The reason for this is that when soyabean is crushed to extract oil, all types of proteins go into the meal and none remain in the oil, which means that even if the oil is extracted from GM soyabean, it will not show any trace of GM material on testing'', Mr Pathak pointed out.

It is because the oil does not contain any DNA material that it is not technically possible to distinguish between GM and non-GM oil. And since it is technically impossible to determine whether the oil is made of GM or non-GM soyabean, the Agriculture Ministry's proposed move will actually tantamount to a ban on soyabean oil imports, the IVOPA — which is basically a forum of companies such as Adani Wilmar, Cargill, Ruchi Soya, Agritech Foods and Liberty Oil, who import crude vegetable oils and refine the same — has held.

According to the Solvent Extractors' Association of India (SEA), the country's imports of soyabean oil have gone up from 7.06 lakh tonnes (lt) in the 1999-2000 oil year (November-October) to 14.22 lt in the 2000-01. Soyaoil's share in total vegetable oil imports have risen from 15.7 per cent in 1999-2000 to 29.4 per cent in 2000-01, even as that of palm oil (both refined and crude) has correspondingly fallen from 67.7 per cent to 60.4 per cent. The increasing share of soya oil imports is being ascribed to its attracting a lower customs duty (45 per cent) compared to the 65 per cent level for crude palm oil and other oils.

``If the Government wants to restrict soya oil imports, it should renegotiate the WTO-bound rate from the existing 45 per cent, which will enable it raise its customs duty on par with other oils. The solution does not lie in banning its imports on grounds that have no scientific rationale'', Mr Pathak said.

According to Mr Pathak, the proposed ban on imports of GM soya oil was also not legally tenable because the Government has only recently approved commercialisation of Mayco's Bt cotton, which is also a GM crop.

``Given that the cottonseed oil obtained from Bt cotton will be consumed locally as food, it is obvious that the Government's approval would have taken into account the fact that there will be no adverse affect on oil produced from the GM crop. Any restriction on imports of soya oil on the basis of genetic modification will, therefore, be challenged as being a non-tariff barrier lacking any scientific underpinnings'', he added.

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