ILSI IFBiC Workshop

Safety of GM crops: compositional analysis, Washington, DC, USA, 13–15 September 2012

The ILSI International Food Biotechnology Committee (IFBiC) hosted a workshop on September 13-15, 2012, in Washington, DC, to identify and address topics related to plant composition from a scientific perspective. The workshop brought together experts in plant breeding and crop composition from all over the world.

Fifteen invited speakers participated in four thematic sessions: conventional development of new crop varieties, development of crops using modern biotechnology, compositional analysis methods, and interpretation of composition data. In addition to these formal presentations, round table discussions were held involving all conference attendees to address four related topics: effects of transgenic versus conventional crop improvement methods on germplasm development, effect of natural variability in crop composition on data interpretation and safety evaluations, selection of comparators for compositional analysis as part of safety assessments, and design of compositional analyses/adequacy of existing OECD consensus guidelines.

Workshop Proceedings

The following documents are available for download in PDF format.

Agenda

List of Participants

Abstracts

The fifteen invited speakers will each contribute a manuscript to be submitted for publication in a special issue of theJournal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (JAFC). The keynote speakers will write an additional manuscript following the conference to summarize the discussions and highlight key points made by individual speakers. ILSI intends to purchase the copyrights for the JAFC special issue, so that all members of the scientific community will have open access to the sixteen papers produced by the conference speakers.

Workshop Presentations

Video is available for the following workshop presentations.

Opening Presentation

Keynote Presentation and Discussion: The Genetics and Consequences of Crop Domestication.  Sherry Flint-Garcia, USDA ARS, USA

Session 1: Conventional Development of New Crop Varieties

Presentation 1.1: Traditional and Modern Plant Breeding Methods with Discussion of Cases on RiceFlavio Breseghello, Embrapa, Brazil

Presentation 1.2: Genomic Variation in Plants Recovered Through Plant Cell and Tissue CultureJohn Finer, The Ohio State University, USA

Presentation 1.3: Mineral Biofortification Strategies for Major Staples: the Example of Common BeanMatthew Blair, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Colombia and Cornell University, USA

Presentation 1.4: Natural Variability in Wheat Grain CompositionPeter Shewry, Rothamsted Research, UK

Session 1: Panel Question and Answer

Session 2: Development of Crops Using Modern Biotechnology

Presentation 2.1: A Look at Product Development with Genetically Modified Crops: Examples from MaizeRita Mumm, University of Illinois, USA

Presentation 2.2: Bringing a Transgenic Crop to Market – Where Compositional Analysis FitsLaura Privalle, BASF Plant Science, USA

Presentation 2.3: Availability and Utility of Crop Composition DataKazumi Kitta, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, Japan

Session 2: Panel Question and Answer

Session 3: Compositional Analysis Methods

Presentation 3.1: OECD Composition Consensus DocumentsKathleen Jones, US FDA, USA

Presentation 3.2: How Composition Methods are Developed and ValidatedHilary Rogers, Eurofins Scientific, USA

Presentation 3.3: Evaluation of Endogenous Allergens for the Safety Evaluation of Genetically Engineered Food Crops: A Review of Methods and RelevanceRichard Goodman, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, USA

Session 3: Panel Question and Answer

Session 4: Interpretation of Composition Data

Presentation 4.1: Food Safety: Importance of CompositionWilna Jansen van Rijssen, personal capacity (retired from the South African Department of Health), South Africa

Presentation 4.2: Biological Importance and Statistical Significance. David Lovell, University of London, UK [Note: Video not available]

Presentation 4.3: Regulatory Perspectives on How Composition Data are Interpreted — FoodLynne Underhill, Health Canada, Canada

Presentation 4.4: Regulatory Perspectives on How Composition Data are Interpreted — FeedBill Price, US FDA (Retired), USA

Session 4: Panel Question and Answer [Note: Video not available]

Final Wrap-Up

Final Wrap-Up with Review of Reports from All Round Table Discussions and Next StepsCo-chair: ILSI IFBiC Crop Composition Issues Task Force, Angela Hendrickson Culler, Monsanto Company, USA