The development and status of Bt rice in China

Abstract

SummaryMultiple lines of transgenic rice expressing insecticidal genes from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) have been developed in China, posing the prospect of increases in production with decreased application of pesticides. We explore the issues facing adoption of Bt rice for commercial production in China. A body of safety assessment work on Bt rice has shown that Bt rice poses a negligible risk to the environment and that Bt rice products are as safe as non-Bt control rice products as food. China has a relatively well-developed regulatory system for risk assessment and management of genetically modified (GM) plants; however, decision-making regarding approval of commercial production has become politicized, and two Bt rice lines that otherwise were ready have not been allowed to enter the Chinese agricultural system. We predict that Chinese farmers would value the prospect of increased yield with decreased use of pesticide and would readily adopt production of Bt rice. That Bt rice lines may not be commercialized in the near future we attribute to social pressures, largely due to the low level of understanding and acceptance of GM crops by Chinese consumers. Hence, enhancing communication of GM crop science-related issues to the public is an important, unmet need. While the dynamics of each issue are particular to China, they typify those in many countries where adoption of GM crops has been not been rapid; hence, the assessment of these dynamics might inform resolution of these issues in other countries.

Development of Bt Rice and Bt Maize in China and Their Efficacy in Target Pest Control

“…In addition, many studies have been conducted to assess the ecological and food safety of Bt rice and Bt maize. While we do not address these issues in the current review, the results indicate that the currently developed Bt rice and Bt maize pose negligible risk to the environment and human health [1,93]. Thus, we conclude that compared to conventional pesticide-treated crop production, planting of Bt rice and Bt maize should be safer to the consumer and more environmentally friendly.…”

“…An important milestone for Bt rice came in 2009 when the Ministry of Agriculture of China issued biosafety certificates for commercial production of the Bt rice lines Huahui 1 and Bt Shanyou 63 in Hubei province, and in 2014 when the biosafety certificates were renewed. The delay in commercial use of Bt rice is largely caused by low public acceptance due to extreme concerns about the food safety of GE crops and the low scientific literacy of the public about GE crops more generally [1]. This situation is not particular to China, and occurs in many countries, for example in European Union countries, in which GE crop products are even less accepted.…”

“…Rice serves as a staple food for more than half of the world’s people [1], and maize serves as food, feed, and industrial material [2,3]. The yields of rice and maize have increased significantly since the adoption of high-yielding selectively bred and hybrid varieties [4], and have reached nearly 208 and 215 million tons in 2014, respectively, in China [5].…”

“…The yields of rice and maize have increased significantly since the adoption of high-yielding selectively bred and hybrid varieties [4], and have reached nearly 208 and 215 million tons in 2014, respectively, in China [5]. However, with the growth of China’s population and the steady decrease in the amount of arable land, the yield of the two crops must increase to meet the increasing demand [1,6]. Multiple factors constrain the production of rice and maize, among which insect pests are an important one.…”

“…A huge research project, called the National GMO New Variety Breeding Program, was initiated in China in 2008, which is expected to invest $US 3.5 billion through 2020 [12,13]. With the massive financial support, great progress has been made in research and development of GE crops, and a large number of GE crop events and varieties have been obtained in China, with traits including herbicide tolerance, insect resistance, drought resistance, stress tolerance, heightened quality and high yield [1,3,14]. In particular, dozens of Bt rice and Bt maize lines have been developed, and many have entered environmental release field testing, and preproduction testing [13].…”