In a country whose culture and identity revolve heavily around corn, or maize the crop was first developed here thousands of years ago the thought of imported GM varieties contaminating indigenous plants frightens many citizens, said Allison Snow, a co-author of the report and a professor of evolution, ecology and organismal biology at Ohio State University.

Because of that fear, Mexico placed a moratorium on planting GM corn in 1998.

However, an estimated 30 percent of the corn that Mexico imports from the United States may be genetically modified, Snow said. The United States does not separate GM corn from non-GM corn, making it impossible for Mexican farmers to know if the grain they receive is genetically engineered or not.

"Reliable unpublished data suggest that it is extremely likely that some GM corn is already growing in Mexico, whether it was intentional or not," said Snow, who is also an expert on plant-to-plant transmission of GM genes.

"What no one knows, however, is how common this has become," she continued. "Though GM seeds imported as grain from the United States would probably result in poor yields, farmers may try to plant these seeds in times of need, and the seeds could also be considered a new source of genetic variation for plant breeding practices."

Snow was part of the Maize Advisory Group, a 16-member group established by the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC). The CEC oversees the environmental provisions of NAFTA. Her colleagues included experts from Mexico, Canada, the United States and England. The advisory group two years studying the potential effects of transgenic or GM corn in Mexico.

Concerns over gene flow from transgenic corn to native Mexican varieties prompted the r
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Contact: Allison Snow
Snow.1@osu.edu
614-292-3445
Ohio State University
8-Nov-2004