Chardon LL maize (T25): your questions answered

Chardon LL is the trade name for a line of genetically modified maize. This line, also known as T25, has been modified to be tolerant to the effects of certain herbicides.

The safety of foods produced from this maize line was first considered in 1996 by the Advisory Committee on Novel Foods and Processes (ACNFP). The Committee was satisfied that these foods are as safe to eat as those from conventional maize.

Clearance to grow Chardon LL maize commercially in the EU was granted by France in 1998. However, there is an agreement between the Government and the biotechnology industry that there will be no commercial growing of GM crops in the UK until the current programme of farm scale trials has been completed.

In 2000, the Company that produces Chardon LL maize applied to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) to have this line placed on the UK National Seeds List. This is the final stage for approval for a crop to be grown in the UK if the moratorium on commercial growing of GM crops is lifted.

Under the National Seeds List Regulations, once a proposed decision has been reached the applicant is notified. At this stage, interested parties are entitled to make written representations or request an oral hearing to discuss the proposed decision. In the case of Chardon LL maize, an objection was made by Friends of the Earth.

Chardon LL maize is grown in the UK, as part of the farm scale trials.

Most of the issues raised at the hearing were about the requirements that Chardon LL would have to satisfy in order to get National Listing. However, other issues associated with the environmental implications and the food safety clearance given to products derived from this maize line were raised. The ACNFP has only addressed the points regarding food safety in its response.

The main issues raised in the public hearing were the regulatory procedure, substantial equivalence and composition of Chardon LL maize; the scientific assessment, the use of GM technology and the possible presence of GM pollen in honey.

Substantial equivalence is a way of assessing the safety of a new food. Foods are tested to see if they are different in composition to conventionally grown foods. Analysis of both the crop and the derived products will give information on the amounts of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals present, as well as any other components that might affect the nutritional properties and the safety of the new food.

This enables a direct comparison between the new food and its conventional counterpart. Any differences found act as the starting point for the safety assessment.

The ACNFP concluded that no new evidence had been submitted to the hearing that would question the safety of foods derived from Chardon LL maize.

The Advisory Committee on Releases to the Environment (ACRE) is considering environmental issues, including the Deliberate Release clearance granted to Chardon LL maize. ACRE is seeking advice on animal feed issues from the Advisory Committee on Animal Feedingstuffs (ACAF). The Plant Variety and Seeds division of DEFRA is considering the points directly relating to the National Listing on Chardon LL maize.

More information can be found at the DEFRA website: www.defra.gov.uk.