Where were they?

A huge conference on food safety in Africa took place in Harare, Zimbabwe last week. Under the auspices of United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) and Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), the conference brought together 200 food safety experts from 50 countries. The conference’s main goal was to devise strategies to eliminate food-borne diseases in Africa.

WHO has already identified cholera, salmonellosis, enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC), hepatitis A and acute aflatoxicosis as the most common food borne diseases afflicting the African continent.

As a biotechnology commentator, I was “stunned” that genengineerosis, a “highly contagious” disease that anti-GMOs activists claim result from consuming genetically engineered food was missing from the WHO’s list. Curious! Curious! Opponents of genetically modified(GM) food did not bother to petition WHO and FAO to include their disease in the Harare deliberations. How did this happen? I am still scratching my head for answers. Wouldn’t these folks have picketed outside WHO and FAO offices to demand that they be heard? Afterall, this is what they do all the time every time meetings are called to enlighten Africa on potential benefits of genetically modified food.

We must all wonder why anti-GMOs activists were missing in action (MIA) in Harare. The Harare conference would, otherwise, have been an ideal platform for them to press their case on the safety of genetically modified food. All along, these folks have been vocal about “potential dangers of GMOs,” an empty phrase whose relevance no longer resonates with the African public. It surprises no one that they least bother to authenticate their wild charges. They have advised Africans not to eat genetically modified food while they themselves, on daily basis, visit Wal-Mart, Safeway, Target, where GM products are readily available. If their arguments against GM food were credible, why, then, didn’t they make their case before eminent scientists who converged in Harare? They would not dare, for they know that their arguments cannot withstand scientific scrutiny. Simply put, they have no grounds to oppose GMOs.

WHO tells us that this year alone, more than 1000 deaths from food-borne related diseases have been reported in about 30 African countries. None, however, resulted from consuming genetically modified food!

Anti-GMOs activists know pretty well that there are no health hazards associated with GM food. WHO has said so. FAO has said so. The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) has said so. What is the value of confusing and misleading? Africa deserves better from anti-GMOs.

Advantages of genetically modified food are well documented. This is the message these folks should be spreading to the world and especially Africa, where majority of the population cannot afford a three-course meal. If GMOs posed health risk to consumers, the issue would have been top of the agenda of the Harare meeting. It would have been brought to the attention of the recently established International Food Safety Authorities Network (INFOSAN), the body that enables member states to exchange key information on food safety.

WHO and FAO have already certified GM food fit for human consumption. GM food is widely consumed in the U.S., Argentina, Brazil, South Africa, China, Egypt, Canada, Spain and Mexico. No incidents of food poisoning, so far, have been reported in these countries.