[food] StarLink Bio-Corn Found in White Corn Products

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StarLink Bio-Corn Found in White Corn Products By Andrea Shalal-Esa

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - StarLink corn, the genetically modified yellow variety whose presence in food products last fall resulted in widespread recalls, has been found for the first time in a white corn product.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (news - web sites) (FDA) said it found genetic material from StarLink corn, which has not been approved for human consumption, in Kash n' Karry White Corn Tortilla Chips last month while investigating a complaint from a Florida optometrist, Dr. Keith Finger.

Finger, who had suffered an allergic reaction to yellow corn products tainted with StarLink, alerted the FDA because he had a milder reaction after eating the white corn chips.

FDA's discovery of StarLink in a white corn product is significant because many food manufacturers last year switched to white corn, which makes up less than 3 percent of the U.S. corn market, to reassure consumers concerned about the possible presence of StarLink in their taco shells and corn chips.

At the time, producers said using white corn eliminated the risk of inadvertently introducing StarLink, which was modified to protect young plants from destructive plants, into their products.

``We tested your sample for the presence of DNA of the gene coding for the pesticidal protein of StarLink corn. The gene was found,'' Frederick Deddy, acting branch chief of the FDA's Import Programs Branch, wrote in a letter to Finger, which was obtained by Reuters.

An FDA official said the agency did not request a recall, but both the Kash n' Karry and Food Lion grocery chains pulled the house brand product from their shelves on Tuesday, The Washington Post reported on Wednesday.

No immediate comment was available from FDA officials or Aventis SA, the Franco-German pharmaceutical group that makes the biotech corn.

ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS TROUBLED BY NEWS

Environmental Protection Agency (news - web sites) spokesman Dave Deegan also had no immediate comment on the report, or its implications for EPA's assessment of possible human exposure to StarLink.

Larry Bohlen of Friends of the Earth (news - web sites), whose research first alerted FDA to the spread of StarLink into human food products, said the news was troubling.

``Millions of people may have thought they were avoiding eating StarLink corn by eating white corn. So now we see it's contaminated too,'' he said.

He noted the continuing spread of StarLink into human food products had already prompted some countries like Sri Lanka to ban any use of the biotech corn.

``The U.S. government's inability to contain StarLink shows how other undesirable biotech crops could get loose in the world food supply,'' Bohlen said.

StarLink, was barred by U.S. regulators for human use because of concerns it might trigger allergic reactions such as rashes, diarrhea or breathing problems.

EPA in 1998 approved the biotech corn variety only for feed use, and required Aventis to keep it away from human products.

But traces of StarLink corn found their way into taco shells, chips and other food products, triggering the eventual recall of more than 300 U.S. foods.

The detection of StarLink in white corn raises serious new questions about the spread of the genetically engineered crop, Bohlen said, suggesting the gene could have found its way into white corn through cross-pollination.

White corn is grown and distributed separately from yellow corn, and industry observers said there are no genetically modified varieties.

But they said there could be co-mingling of conventional and modified corn, as well as white and yellow corn, during processing, transportation and through cross-pollination.

QUESTIONS ABOUT ALLERGY TESTS

Dozens of people initially reported experiencing allergic reactions linked to StarLink-tainted food products last year.

The U.S. government last month released a report showing 17 people who complained of possible allergy attacks after eating corn products -- including the Florida case -- had failed to show any signs of antibodies to StarLink's key component.

But environmentalists said the report was flawed and inconclusive. They said the latest news underscored the need for more comprehensive tests.

An EPA advisory panel of experts will meet in Washington on July 17 to review new StarLink information and recommend whether or not to grant a request by Aventis to retroactively approve StarLink for human consumption.



-- Anonymous, July 04, 2001

Answers

Big Lots often has yellow corn products and I've wondered. . . Watch out for white corn products at Big Lots now!

-- Anonymous, July 04, 2001

I thought this was going to be about Bradband not corn!!!!! StarLink sounds like electronics!!!!

-- Anonymous, July 04, 2001

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