3 officials sacked over GM rice trial at school
By Li Qian |
December 7, 2012, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
Three officials who approved and conducted a trial of genetically modified rice on children in central China's Hunan Province in 2008 have been sacked, authorities said yesterday.
They were punished for "violating relevant regulations, scientific ethics and academic integrity," according to a joint statement by the organizations they worked for, Xinhua news agency reported.
The project was led by Tang Guangwen, a professor at Tufts University in the US, Yin Shi'an from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and Wang Yin of the Zhejiang Province Academy of Medical Science.
Its aim was to discover effective solutions to the problem of vitamin A deficiency in children.
Yin, Wang and Hu Yuming of the Hunan Center for Disease Control and Prevention were the three officials sacked.
The Ministry of Health ordered an investigation into the US-China joint project after environmental organization Greenpeace broke the news earlier this year.
It cited a paper published in the August edition of The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
The trial was conducted on 80 pupils in Hengnan County of Hunan Province, with 25 of them being fed 60 grams of "Golden Rice" on June 2, 2008.
The Chinese CDC said Tang cooked the rice in the US and brought it into the country four days before the trial, without declaring it to relevant authorities.
The GM rice was mixed with ordinary rice and served for the children's lunch.
The research team had informed the parents about the trial but did not tell them GM rice would be used.
Meanwhile, the children who took part in the trial are to be awarded compensation.
The students at the Jiangkou Township Primary School in Hengyang City fed with the rice are to receive 80,000 yuan (US$12,834) each.
The other 63 children in the trial, who were fed spinach or carotene capsules, are to receive 10,000 yuan each.
Liao Yizhi, deputy Party chief of Hengnan County, met the parents on November 30, the Oriental Morning Post reported.
After the story broke, parents had expressed fears over whether there might be risks from their children eating GM food. The compensation was said to be in recognition of their concerns.
So far, no child has reported any adverse effects from eating the rice.
Officials said that the rice had been tested in the US and was "harmless."
The trial showed that the rice, modified to be rich in carotene, hence its golden color, was as effective at providing vitamin A to children as capsules and even better than spinach as a source of vitamin A.
Authorities said they would be publishing detailed results of an investigation into the project.
They were punished for "violating relevant regulations, scientific ethics and academic integrity," according to a joint statement by the organizations they worked for, Xinhua news agency reported.
The project was led by Tang Guangwen, a professor at Tufts University in the US, Yin Shi'an from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and Wang Yin of the Zhejiang Province Academy of Medical Science.
Its aim was to discover effective solutions to the problem of vitamin A deficiency in children.
Yin, Wang and Hu Yuming of the Hunan Center for Disease Control and Prevention were the three officials sacked.
The Ministry of Health ordered an investigation into the US-China joint project after environmental organization Greenpeace broke the news earlier this year.
It cited a paper published in the August edition of The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
The trial was conducted on 80 pupils in Hengnan County of Hunan Province, with 25 of them being fed 60 grams of "Golden Rice" on June 2, 2008.
The Chinese CDC said Tang cooked the rice in the US and brought it into the country four days before the trial, without declaring it to relevant authorities.
The GM rice was mixed with ordinary rice and served for the children's lunch.
The research team had informed the parents about the trial but did not tell them GM rice would be used.
Meanwhile, the children who took part in the trial are to be awarded compensation.
The students at the Jiangkou Township Primary School in Hengyang City fed with the rice are to receive 80,000 yuan (US$12,834) each.
The other 63 children in the trial, who were fed spinach or carotene capsules, are to receive 10,000 yuan each.
Liao Yizhi, deputy Party chief of Hengnan County, met the parents on November 30, the Oriental Morning Post reported.
After the story broke, parents had expressed fears over whether there might be risks from their children eating GM food. The compensation was said to be in recognition of their concerns.
So far, no child has reported any adverse effects from eating the rice.
Officials said that the rice had been tested in the US and was "harmless."
The trial showed that the rice, modified to be rich in carotene, hence its golden color, was as effective at providing vitamin A to children as capsules and even better than spinach as a source of vitamin A.
Authorities said they would be publishing detailed results of an investigation into the project.
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