Reuters | October 18, 1999
WASHINGTON - U.S. wheat industry officials said they were working with the Thai government to investigate the apparent discovery of genetically-modified DNA in a shipment of U.S. wheat.
The discovery was surprising because there are no commercially grown varieties of genetically-modified (GM) wheat.
Wheat has lagged behind other crops like corn, soybeans and potatoes in the development of GM varieties. Thailand is anxious to have the issue resolved because of labeling requirements for food products containing wheat the country sells to the European Union.
Dawn Forsythe, spokeswoman for the U.S. Wheat Associates, said Thai grain testers found the modified DNA last month in a shipment of wheat loaded out of Portland.
"It's not a question of the safety of the wheat," Forsythe said.
The U.S. Wheat Associates asked researchers at the University of Idaho to review the testing procedures used by the Thais and to conduct their own tests on the wheat sample.
If the university researchers confirm the presence of genetically-modified DNA, their next step would be to track down where it came from, Forsythe said.
Since 1994, the U.S. Agriculture Department's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has received 78 applications for field testing of GM wheat, but it's difficult to say how much has been planted, she said.
One seed company contacted by the U.S. Wheat Associate said it burns, buries or otherwise "devitalizes" grain from test plots when it is finished with it, she said.
It could be some genetically-modified material from a previous shipment was mixed with the wheat. About one-third of the U.S. corn crop and about one-half of the U.S. soybean crop are GM varieties.
Meanwhile, the Thai government has given no sign it wants the wheat shipment returned, she said.
The U.S. Wheat Associates is anxious to get to the bottom of the mystery as quickly as possible, but it could be the end of the year before the University of Idaho researchers complete their report, she said.
