Ireland should join world efforts to increase the use of genetically modified crops as these "biocrops" could help save lives, provide better nourishment and reduce poverty, according to the head of a body promoting food biotechnology.
There are more than 35 million farmers working 404 million hectares of biocrops in developing and developed countries, said Dr Clive James, chairman of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications.
He was speaking yesterday in Dublin at BioIreland 2006, the third all-Ireland biotechnology conference.
"Is it reasonable to suggest that these 35 million farmers are all wrong about biocrops? This food is as safe as conventional food."
Europe had been slow to accept biocrops compared to North and South America, yet Asian countries were likely to lead the next stage of biocrop development, he argued.
"When we develop this technology in the next decade, let us make sure to tackle the largest pollution problem we have. I am talking about poverty, the most pervasive pollutant, which destroys the lives of 1.3 billion people," he stated.
"My hope is Ireland will make the right decision and join us in this fight against hunger by promoting this new technology."
The Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, gave the opening address at the international conference, held at University College Belfield. "Biotechnology will transform all our lives in this century," he told delegates. The Government had targeted biotech as a key part of its research strategy, he said.
The US could meet most of its enormous demand for petrol and diesel with biofuels derived from plants, said Dr Don Erbach, national programme leader for the US Department of Agriculture's engineering/energy programme. Such a change would provide security of supply and would not damage the farming sector, he said.
The US burned about 180 billion gallons of petrol and diesel a year, with imports to meet demand costing about $300 billion.
Biofuels, ethanol derived from sugarcane or maize and biodiesel from vegetable oils provided just 2.6 per cent of current demand, but could deliver almost all of it if biofuel technology was developed, he said.
"In my opinion cellulosic biomass feedstock can meet our transport needs," Dr Erbach said.