[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 112 (Wednesday, September 20, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1540]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         RECENT ACTION ON ``GOLDEN RICE'' OFFERS GREAT PROMISE

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                           HON. DOUG BEREUTER

                              of nebraska

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 20, 2000

  Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Speaker, this Member commends to his colleagues the 
following editorial from the August 18, 2000, Omaha World-Herald. The 
editorial expresses support for recent actions which will make the 
newly developed ``golden rice'' more widely available worldwide. This 
rice, which has been generally engineered to contain more beta 
carotine, holds the potential to dramatically improve lives by helping 
to combat malnutrition and blindness among Vitamin A-deficient children 
throughout the world.

                   A Laudable Gift of Life and Sight

       A lot of people, especially outside the United States, 
     aren't buying genetically modified crops. All right then: 
     What if somebody gave them away?
       Well, somebody has--``somebody'' being Monsanto Co.
       It was a development so stunning that probably no novelist 
     would ever incorporate it in a plot--too far-fetched. But 
     Monsanto announced that it would be granting royalty-free 
     licenses worldwide via the Internet for its newly developed 
     ``golden rice.'' It has been modified so that it's enriched 
     in beta carotene, which the body converts to Vitamin A. 
     (Licenses for other modified rices will similarly be cost-
     free, but golden rice is by far the star of the show.)
       If this offer is widely taken up, the effect is likely to 
     be dramatic. Worldwide, more than a million Vitamin-A 
     deficient children die every year: 300,000 or so go blind.
       We'd like to think Monsanto's generosity might inspire 
     imitators among other holders of patents on such superfoods. 
     First of all, there's the obvious prospect of making a better 
     life for a lot of children in the Third World. Additionally, 
     modified crops are getting a bum rap as being unsafe or 
     unhealthy--``frankenfoods,'' in the unfortunate popular 
     jargon. Maybe moves like Monsanto's will help dispel such 
     thinking.
       That latter point is, in fact, Monsanto's stated purpose. 
     The argument can therefore be made that the chemical and 
     agricultural giant is merely acting in its own long-term 
     self-interest.
       Nothing wrong with that. If this act and perhaps others 
     like it can break that logjam of opinion, the company or 
     companies that help bring it about deserve to benefit. But in 
     the here and now, it was an impressive example of a giant 
     company being a good corporate citizen of the world. The 
     folks at Monsanto who made the decision have a right to be 
     proud.

     

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