GM potatoes will be grown on the outskirts of the capital

The first domestic genetically modified potatoes are planned to be planted at the capital's special polygon on May 15-20.

The head of the National Biosafety Coordination Center of the Institute of Genetics and Cytology of the National Academy of Sciences Sergey Dromashko told the correspondent of the Minsk-News agency.

Genetically modified potatoes will be planted on a special landfill with an area of 0.3 hectares. It is located on Franziska Skaryna Street at the biological experimental field.

According to the expert, all international and national safety requirements have been met at the experimental test site.

– We have compiled a list of plants and animals that grow and live within a radius of 300 meters. This is done in order to monitor annually whether there are any adverse consequences from the use of genetically modified organisms for the environment.

The GM potato itself was created at the Institute of Genetics and Cytology of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus on the basis of the Belarusian variety "Scarb". As the specialist promises, the bred root crop will be resistant to the Colorado potato beetle thanks to an embedded gene that produces a toxin against the main pest of potato fields. Moreover, the gene begins to work only under the influence of sunlight, that is, in the tops, and not in the root crop. Thus, according to Sergey Dromashko, there is no threat to human health. The economic benefits of the invention have not yet been determined by scientists. If the experiment ends successfully and no harmful consequences for humans and nature are revealed, then it will be possible to expect the first domestic genetically modified root crops on the market in 2-3 years.

It is worth noting that according to our (Belarusian – VM) legislation, all products with genetically modified components are subject to mandatory labeling "Contains GMOs".

Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru07.05.2013