健康生活:中国的转基因食品之争

A Chinese agricultural official's unsupported claims about the carcinogenic risks of consuming genetically modified soybeans have rekindled a fervent deBAte about the use of genetically modified crops in a country with ever-expanding food needs.

中国一名农业官员声称食用转基因大豆有致癌风险，这一未经证实的说法在一个食品需求不断增加的国家引发了关于使用转基因作物的激烈争论。

Wang Xiaoyu, deputy secretary general of the Heilongjiang Soybean Association, a supporter of local non-genetically modified soybeans, recently told local media that people who consume soy oil made with genetically modified soybeans 'are more vulnerable to developing tumors and suffering sterility' (in Chinese)

黑龙江大豆协会副秘书长王小语近日向当地媒体表示，转基因大豆油的消费者更容易患肿瘤、不孕不育。他是当地非转基因大豆的支持者。

To back his claim, Mr. Wang noted that regions where consumption of GMO soy oil was high, such as the southern provinces of Fujian and Guangdong, also boasted relatively high levels of cancer.

为了佐证自己的观点，王小语指出，例如福建和广东等南方省份是转基因大豆油的消费集中区域，同时也是肿瘤发病集中区。

Experts were quick to call Mr. Wang's methodology into question, with several noting that he had failed to present even a scintilla of laboratory evidence linking GMO soy oil with cancer or fertility problems. But in a country already deeply suspicious of genetically modified crops, social media users took the idea and ran with it, sending fear over carcinogenic oil seeping through the Chinese Internet.

专家们很快对王小语的理论提出质疑，数位专家表示他甚至未拿出转基因大豆油与癌症或不孕不育问题有关的一丁点实验室证据来。但是，在一个本就对转基因作物有着深深疑虑的国家，社交媒体用户听信了这一说法并大肆传播，令整个中国互联网都充斥着对“致癌油”的担忧之情。

'We should replace all the leaders' special provisions with GMO food,' wrote one user of Sina Corp.'s popular Weibo microblogging platform. 'Good things should be reserved for the Communist Party.'

新浪微博的一位用户写道：我们应该把所有领导的特供食品都换成转基因食品，好东西应该留给共产党。

The strong response to Mr. Wang's conjecture appears to have been fueled in part by a recent government decision to approve imports of new varieties of genetically modified soy beans, as well as by rumors that people in the U.S. don't eat the genetically modified foods they produce.

公众对于王小语这一推测的强烈反应，似乎在一定程度上与近期政府决定批准几种新的转基因大豆进口有关，此外也可能是因为有谣言说美国人不吃自产的转基因食品。

In June, Chinese agricultural authorities approved imports of three new genetically modified soy bean varieties, including two produced by U.S. seed giant Monsanto and one by German chemical producer BASF. GMO opponents criticized the country's agriculture ministry for failing to be transparent about the approvals.

今年6月份，中国农业当局批准进口三种转基因大豆，其中两种来自美国种业巨头孟山都公司(Monsanto)，另一种来自德国化工生产商巴斯夫(BASF)。反对转基因食品的人批评农业部审批不透明。

The ministry said in a statement that it had received import applications from the two companies in 2010, but a search of the ministry website turns up no documents or notices indicating applications were filed. The ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

农业部发布声明说，其在2010年就已经收到了这两家公司的进口申请，但是在农业部网站搜索不到表明申请已经提交的文件或者通知。农业部未立即回复记者的置评请求。

Meanwhile, rumors that U.S. consumers didn't eat genetically modified food fed into existing paranoia in China about GMO products, which have been described on some Chinese Internet discussion boards as a 'soft bomb' unleashed by the U.S. to destroy China and a U.S conspiracy to manipulate the global economy.

同时，有关美国消费者不吃转基因食品的谣言也令中国国内对转基因食品的猜疑更加狂热。在中国一些网络论坛中，还有人说转基因食品是美国旨在摧毁中国的“软炸弹”，是美国想要操纵全球经济的一个阴谋。

In fact, U.S. consumers eat large quantities of genetically modified food. Speaking in a panel discussion hosted on the website of the Communist Party mouthpiece People's Daily (in Chinese), Li Ning, director of the Ministry of Agriculture's gene safety management division, noted that 70% of food in the U.S. contained genetically modified material.

实际上，美国消费者食用大量转基因食品。在共产党喉舌《人民日报》网站所举办的访谈中，农业部科技发展中心基因安全管理处处长李宁说，美国70％以上的食品都含有转基因成分。

'There haven't been any confirmed food safety cases caused by GMO food so far. It is safe to eat genetically modified food,' she said.

她说，至今未发生一例经过证实的转基因食品安全性事故；食用转基因食品是安全的。

Tasked with feeding 20% of the world's population on less than 10% of the world's arable land, China's government has pushed for the use of GMO technologies to boost the country's seed sector and improve agricultural efficiency. The country's national science and strategy lists the development of pest- and disease-resistant GMO crops as a key project.

为了用不足世界10%的耕地养活世界20%的人口，中国政府推动了转基因技术的使用以提振该国的种子行业、提高农业生产效率。中国国家科技战略将抗病虫害转基因作物的研发列为重要项目。

Developing genetically modified crops is 'just like adding wings to a tiger,' Huang Dafang, a researcher with the Biotechnology Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, said during an interview in March. A key GMO supporter, Mr. Huang argues that conventional agriculture alone cannot solve China's food needs.

中国农业科学院生物技术研究所研究员黄大昉在3月份接受采访时说，发展转基因作物是“如虎添翼”。作为转基因的重要支持者，黄大昉说，单靠传统农业无法解决中国的食品需求。

But public opposition to the use of genetically modified crops remains strong.

但是公众反对使用转基因作物的声音依然很高。

'China doesn't need to develop GMO. If we cultivate land well and waste less feed (don't throw dead pigs into rivers), China's agriculture can feed the Chinese people,' Gu Xiulin, a Yunnan University of Finance and Economics processor, wrote on Weibo. 'GMO is a magic knife that can annihilate mankind and destroy the environment例 don't be fooled.'

云南财经大学教授顾秀林在微博上写道：中国根本不用搞转基因，如果好好种地、少浪费饲料（不要把老多猪喂死了扔江河里），中国农业能养活中国人；转基因是灭亡人类毁坏生态的一把魔刀，不要上当。

In fact, China has been importing genetically modified soy beans since 1997, and also allows the import of some varieties of genetically modified corn, though both are subject to strict controls. At present, genetically modified corn and soy are only approved for processing into soyoil, soymeal and animal feed, not direct human consumption.

实际上，中国自1997年起就一直在进口转基因大豆，同时也允许进口某些转基因玉米，尽管对两者都进行了严格控制。目前，转基因玉米和大豆只批准用于加工为大豆油、豆粕和动物饲料，而不是直接供人食用。

China has become the world's largest soybean importer, buying about 60% of the globally traded soybeans. Most of those imported soybeans are genetically modified varieties produced in the U.S., Brazil and Argentina.

中国已经成为了世界最大的大豆进口国，进口量占到了全球大豆贸易量的60%。而中国进口的大多数大豆都是产自美国、巴西和阿根廷的转基因品种。

In November 2009, the agricultural ministry issued bio-safety certificates to two strains of pest-resistant GMO rice and one variety phytase corn, approving them for use on experimental plots. (Phytase can increase phosphorus absorption in animals and helps reduce feed costs and improve feed efficiency.) Commercial planting of GMO crops is still strictly prohibited, though European Union authorities claim to have found traces of genetically modified rice in imported rice products from China.

在2009年11月份，中国农业部向两种抗虫害转基因水稻及一种转植酸酶基因玉米颁发了生物安全证书，批准它们在试验田中进行种植。（植酸酶可以增加动物对磷的吸收，帮助降低饲养成本、提高饲养效率）。商业种植转基因作物仍被严格禁止，不过欧盟(European Union)当局声称已经在从中国进口的大米产品中发现了转基因大米的痕迹。

The government has not signaled any intention to allow large-scale planting of GMO grain crops, largely out of concern over the public reaction.

中国政府并未显示出任何允许大规模种植转基因粮食作物的意图，这主要是出于对公众反应的担心。

'It's not normal for a developing country like China not to develop advanced technologies,' Mr. Huang said.

黄大昉称，中国这样的发展中国家不发展先进科技，这是不正常的。