[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 9]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 12197]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



  INTRODUCTION OF THE BIOTECHNOLOGY AND AGRICULTURE IN THE DEVELOPING 
                           WORLD ACT OF 2001

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 27, 2001

  Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas. Mr. Speaker, today I am 
introducing a bill to establish a grant program under the Secretary of 
Agriculture to support research and development programs in 
agricultural biotechnology to address the food and economic needs of 
the developing world.
  My bill recognizes the great potential of agricultural biotechnology 
to combat hunger, malnutrition, and sickness in the developing world 
and provides the mechanism to encourage the pursuit of this exciting 
technology.
  Portions of the developing world are facing a pandemic of 
malnutrition and disease; 200 million people on the African continent 
alone are chronically malnourished. Traditional farming practices 
cannot meet the growing needs of the developing world. Africa's crop 
production is the lowest in the world and even with about two-thirds of 
its labor force engaged in agriculture, Africa currently imports more 
than 25 percent of its grain for food and feed.
  Biotechnology offers great promise for agriculture and nutrition in 
the developing world. Vitamin-enhanced foods, foods higher in protein, 
and fruits and vegetables with longer shelf-lives have been developed 
using biotechnology. Biotechnology can promote sustainable agriculture, 
leading to food and economic security in developing nations. 
Biotechnology can help developing countries produce higher crop yields 
while using fewer pesticides and herbicides. My bill does not encourage 
the development of pesticide-resistant crops.
  An added benefit of increased yields through biotechnology is that 
increased productivity on existing crop land reduces the amount of land 
that needs to be farmed as well as the need for new crop acreage, which 
can greatly slow the rate of habitat destruction. Since most food 
production and farming in the developing world is done by women, such 
an increase in productivity also enables women to spend their time on 
other productive activities and better care for their families.
  Biotechnology can also improve the health of citizens of developing 
countries by combating illness. Substantial progress has been made in 
the developed world on vaccines against life-threatening illnesses, 
but, unfortunately, infrastructure limitations often hinder the 
effectiveness of traditional vaccination methods in some parts of the 
developing world. For example, many vaccines must be kept refrigerated 
until they are injected. Even if a health clinic has electricity and is 
able to deliver effective vaccines, the cost of multiple needles can 
hinder vaccination efforts. Additionally, the improper use of 
hypodermic needles can spread HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. 
Biotechnology offers the prospect of orally delivering vaccines to 
immunize against life-threatening illnesses through agricultural 
products in a safe and effective manner.
  My bill establishes a grant program under the Foreign Agricultural 
Service in the Department of Agriculture to encourage research in 
agricultural biotechnology. Eligible grant recipients include 
historically black colleges and universities, land-grant colleges, 
Hispanic serving institutions, and tribal colleges or universities. 
Non-profit organizations and consortia of for-profit and in-country 
agricultural research centers are also eligible.
  I encourage my colleagues to support this important piece of 
legislation.

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