USDA Deregulates Biotech Amylase Corn

USDA announced Feb. 11 that it has deregulated a variety of corn genetically engineered to produce a common enzyme that speeds the breakdown of starch into sugar, a key step in making ethanol.

USDA announced Feb. 11 that it has deregulated a variety of corn genetically engineered to produce a common enzyme that speeds the breakdown of starch into sugar, a key step in making ethanol. The decision is expected to help the United States meet its goals for ethanol production, the department said.

USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said Syngenta, the Swiss maker of the enzyme, called alpha-amylase, will create an advisory council and take other steps to alleviate concerns by food makers about the genetically engineered corn variety. Syngenta will manage production of the corn variety (brand name Enogen) using a contracted, closed system. The company said it will work with a small number of corn growers and ethanol plants this year and plan for larger scale commercial introduction in 2012.

Syngenta requested in 2005 that APHIS deregulate the corn variety. Since 2002, growers have planted 36,000 acres of corn amylase under USDA notification and permitting procedures. Syngenta said that this year it expected the corn to be grown on fewer than 25,000 acres, in the western parts of Kansas and Nebraska . However, use could expand greatly in the future.

"APHIS conducted a plant pest risk assessment and found this line of corn does not pose a plant pest risk, and should no longer be subject to regulation by APHIS," said Michael Gregoire, deputy administrator of the agency's biotechnology regulatory services.

Several groups, including the North American Millers' Association, the Center for Food Safety and Union of Concerned Scientists, said USDA failed to adequately consider the impact the GE corn crop would have on human health, the environment, or the livelihood of famers. Another concern of some in the food industry is that if the amylase corn is found in food supplies it could lead to recalls or disrupt exports.

The Center for Food Safety, an advocacy group, said it was preparing to sue. The group persuaded a court to temporarily revoke the approvals of the biotech alfalfa and sugar beets because USDA had not done a full environmental impact statement. The department, which has been reviewing Syngenta's application since 2005, did not prepare such a statement for Syngenta's corn.

Syngenta said the amylase enzyme is not active when the kernel is intact. It is most active, the company said, at certain levels of temperature, acidity and moisture found in ethanol factories but rarely in factories that make corn starch, corn syrup or corn chips.

Syngenta also said the corn would be grown only in the vicinity of ethanol plants. Farmers would be under contract and have financial incentives to sell their output only to that plant. Other steps would be taken to limit cross-pollination or inadvertent mixing in grain elevators.

Ethanol makers could save money on energy costs by using corn containing amylase, an enzyme that helps break down starch in corn kernels. The amylase trait enables growers to use less water and energy to produce the corn and creates a greater ethanol yield from the same quantity of corn. Syngenta said it will take steps to prevent mixing of the specialty corn with regular field corn.

Syngenta previously noted that its analysis of the amylase trait's potential indicates that it could mean an additional 8 to 15 cents or more of value per gallon of ethanol produced. Value creation, it said, is driven by a combination of factors such as increased throughput and through reduced water, chemical, and energy requirements, therefore reducing the carbon footprint. Western Plains Energy, an ethanol production facility in Oakland , Kan. , realized these benefits since it began testing grain containing the trait in late 2007, according to a Syngenta news release. The company claims that its amylase grain from Syngenta produces an 8 percent increase in ethanol production and an 8 percent decrease in natural gas consumption to produce ethanol.

Syngenta says Enogen is one of the first crops genetically engineered to contain a trait that influences use of the plant after harvest. Virtually all past biotech crops have had traits like insect resistance, aimed at helping farmers more than manufacturers or consumers. Enogen is also one of the first to be engineered solely for industrial purposes.

The Food and Drug Administration approved amylase corn as safe for human consumption in August 2007. And, amylase corn is approved for import in Mexico, Russia, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Korea, Taiwan, Japan, Switzerland, and the Philippines and for cultivation in Canada, according to Syngenta. 

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