By Izah Morales
INQUIRER.net

CEBU, Philippines — Following the ban on melamine-contaminated milk products from China, health officials here reassured that the Department of Health will continue implementing strict controls and inspection on imported food products while ensuring information sharing to avoid another health scare.

At the opening ceremony of the 5th Asian Conference on food and nutrition safety, Bureau of Food and Drugs (BFAD) director Leticia Gutierrez said government will continue monitoring milk and milk products from China.

“We also make sure that imported products entering the country have a certificate of product registration,” added Gutierrez.

Chinese Center of Disease Control director Junshi Chen admitted that the Ministry of Health of China has used “a level of 15 mg/kg of melamine in infant formula for risk communication purposes.”

“The 15 mg, it’s not likely to cause adverse health effects to consumers. If it’s higher than 15, then it’s risky,” said Chen.

Dr. Robert Baker, global head of food safety at Mars Incorporated, however, stressed that any form of adulteration should not be happening.

Apart from food contamination issues, Dr. Masami Takeuchi, Food Safety officer of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO-UN), noted the impact of trade, economics and policies on world food supply and food safety.

Takeuchi said the increasing volume and diversity of international food trading can affect food safety and food supply.

By Izah Morales
INQUIRER.net

CEBU, Philippines — Among the member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Philippines is the most advanced in implementing safety regulations for genetically modified (GM) crops, experts said here.

“Pinaka-advance tayo kasi we were able to commercialize GM products such as Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) corn and herbicide-resistant corn. [We are the most advanced because we were able to commercialize genetically modified products such as Bt corn and herbicide-resistant corn.],” said Reynaldo Ebora, executive director of the Philippine Council for Advance Science and Technology Research and Development (PCASTRD) of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST).

In contrast, LAO PDR and Myanmar are still in the initial stages of developing biosafety policies.

Biosafety laws in Cambodia and Malaysia were approved in January 2008 and July 2007, respectively. Meanwhile, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam that have existing regulations are conducting field trials, said Ebora during a symposium on Biotechnology and Nutritionally Enhanced Food and Crops here in Cebu.

Ebora pointed out that market acceptance of GM crops is not a problem in the Philippines.

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By Izah Morales
INQUIRER.net

CEBU, Philippines — The growing number of the population, the rise in food prices and the increase in cost of global fuel can affect food and nutrition in Asia, Assistant Secretary Maria Bernardita Flores of the National Nutrition Council of the Department of Health said during a symposium on biotechnology and nutritionally enhanced food and crops during the 5th Asian Conference on Food and Nutrition Safety here.

In the Philippines, government hunger mitigation programs like the “Food for the School” program and “Tindahan Natin” are existing efforts to address the problem of food security, Flores said.

“‘Yung food for school program aims to address hunger among the families but the delivery is through the child who is in school while the Tindahan Natin, run by National Food Authority and Department of Social Welfare and Development offer rice at reduced prices [The food for school program aims to address hunger among the families but the delivery is through the child who is in school while the Tindahan Natin, run by NFA and DSWD offer rice at reduced prices.],” Flores said.

Flores recommended the development of a conceptual framework for understanding hunger and malnutrition; establishment of surveillance and monitoring systems; strengthening of food production; scaling up of effective nutrition intervention programs; and formulatation of policies supportive of food and nutrition security.

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By Agence France-Presse

PARIS — Scientists have grown genetically engineered purple tomatoes in an unusual endeavor to promote healthy food.

The tomatoes include two genes taken from the snapdragon flower (Antirrhinum majus) to enable them to express a compound called anthocyanin, the purple pigment found in high levels in fruit such as blackberries and cranberries.

Previous research has found that anthocyanins offer protection against certain cancers, cardiovascular disease and degenerative diseases, and may also hinder inflammation, obesity and diabetes.

The study is published online on Sunday by Nature Biotechnology, a journal of the London-based Nature Publishing Group.

Researcher Cathie Martin from the John Innes Centre, a biotechnology institute in Norwich, eastern England, said the point behind the purple toms was to boost the healthiness of diets.

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By Anna Valmero
INQUIRER.net

COLLABORATION between the government, private sector and the academe is the key theme tying all the panel recommendations at the fourth en banc meeting of the Congressional Commission on Science and Technology and Engineering (COMSTE) held October 6.

The six COMSTE panels presented in the meeting include agriculture and food, electronics and semiconductors, energy and environment, health services, IT and IT-enabled industries and science, math and engineering education.

Of the six, COMSTE chairman and Senator Edgardo Angara said food and energy will be the body’s top priority.

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