Kyodo World Service | December 30, 1999 | By: Rieko Saito
TOKYO - Many people in the Waseda district of Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward are joining a campaign called the "My Tofu" project, organized by shopkeepers promising to provide fresh bean curd every week made exclusively from organically grown soybeans.
"To those who don't feel comfortable with tofu made from imported soybeans, many of which are genetically altered - why not join us?" a campaign leaflet asks.
The project is part of the rapidly spreading "soybean-field trust" system launched by consumers opposed to imports of farm produce made with genetically modified organism (GMO) technology.
Under the trust system, a consumer becomes the "owner" of about 30 square meters of soybean field for 4,000 yen per year, and entrusts the cultivation of soybeans to contracted farmers.
Crops will be handed to the "owner" in the form of soybean products such as tofu, soybean paste and soy sauce made by food processors who are also taking part in the project.
Junichiro Yasui, leader of the Waseda shopkeepers, calculates that an average 40 kilograms of soybean crops can be expected from the 30 sq. meters of field. That makes 24 standard-size pieces of tofu, after subtracting costs and profits for farmers and processors.
"Four thousand yen divided by 24 makes the price of the special tofu 170 yen per piece, cheaper than the average 200 yen per piece made from ordinary soybeans," he said.
A condition participants have to accept, however, is that the amount of tofu they receive could vary depending on the weather.
The soybean-field trust system was launched by the Consumer Union of Japan in 1998, with 15 groups each gathering about 100 consumer participants. The number of groups grew in 1999 to more than 60 nationwide, as more people became concerned about the safety of food containing GMOs, said Setsuko Yasuda, leader of the union's No GMO Campaign.
The Consumer Union launched the campaign in various forms in 1996, when the Japanese government approved imports of GM soybeans, rapeseed and corn.
Public participation in the anti-GMO movement, however, really took off this year when debates intensified on whether or not to introduce a mandatory labeling system for food products containing GMOs to let consumers know and give them a choice in purchases.
GMOs are organisms grown using genetic modification technologies. The technologies include, for example, transplanting a bacteria gene which is resilient to certain types of herbicide into soybeans to make them tolerant of the herbicides.
In the mid-1990s, the United States adopted guidelines for commercial application of some of the technologies, based on a concept endorsed by biotech companies developing GM seeds that GM crops are substantially equivalent to conventional crops unless they differ significantly in composition or nutrition.
The guidelines were later adopted by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) nations, including Japan.
Cultivation of GM crops then spread quickly over the past few years, particularly in North America.
The cultivation acreage of GM soybeans, corn and potatoes in the U.S. increased from several percent of the total in 1996 to around 30% in 1998, according to the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
In Japan, which is about 97% dependent on imported soybeans for its tofu, soybean paste and oil, probably 50% of all soybeans consumed in the nation could be GM crops, industry people say, while 30% of potatoes imported for animal feed could also be GM crops.
The ratios are not known exactly because GM crops are mixed with non-GM crops in exporting countries during distribution.
The rapid increases in GMO imports ignited heated debates on the safety of GMO-containing food products.
Those who support GMO development say the safety of GM crops has been tested for years from almost all possible angles. They are as safe as - or as dangerous as - conventional farm products, most of which have been developed artificially through generations of pollination and cross-breeding.
Making crops resilient to herbicides reduces the use of agricultural chemicals, thus helping to protect the environment.
Ultimately, they also say, GM technologies will save the world from food shortages, a perilous situation in the 21st century given the rapidly increasing global population.
Opponents argue that existing test results are not sufficient to be convincing. The technologies are no longer the same as conventional cross-breeding, because implanting gene information specific to bacteria, insects, or animals into other types of organism is to create organisms that do not exist naturally.
Such technologies could go out of scientists' control, causing unpredictable mutations of organisms, and unexpectedly create new diseases or damage to the environment, they say.
Another problem with GM technologies, opponents say, is that they are currently monopolized by a handful of multinational biotech companies based in developed countries.
With the numerous patents they hold on GMOs and seeds, the companies could control the world's food supplies, and yet their primary purpose is to make profits, not supply food for hungry people, opponents say.
"There is a wide gap in knowledge between scientists and the ordinary public," said Yutaka Tabei, deputy director at the farm ministry's Innovative Technology Division.
If people understand enough about the technologies, they will understand the safety of GM crops, he said, adding that the technologies are necessary for Japan as it is the single biggest food importing country in the world.
This fall the farm ministry announced it will introduce mandatory labeling at least for 24 processed food items from April 2001, but Japan has generally been slow to react to opposition in the face of pressure from GM crop-exporting countries, saying that mandatory labeling could disrupt world farm trade.
Copyright 1999 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
