Japan Economic Newswire HEADLINE:  Thailand to  declare  GMO-free
zones DATELINE: BANGKOK, Sept.  27 Kyodo 

Thailand  will  establish  agricultural  zones  declared  free of
genetically modified organisms  (  GMOs)  in  a  bid  to  promote
exports, a senior government official said Monday.  

'Agricultural  products  from GMO -free zones exported to foreign
markets will be guaranteed by Thai authorities as  GMO  -  free,'
said  Newin  Chidchob,  deputy  agriculture  minister.   GMOs are
genetically altered in  favor  of  certain  attributes,  such  as
resistance  to  disease  and  insects.  But many worry about crop
mutation,  damage to  the  environment  and  the  possibility  of
unknown  danger  to  human health.  GMOs have turned into a major
concern in several key markets  of  Thai  agricultural  products,
including  the  European  Union and Japan.  'We have no policy of
allowing trading in modified food in Thailand.   GMO  plants  are
banned from import,  except for study and research,  and we never
produce and export such food,'  Newin said.  The authorities will
announce  certain  agricultural  areas where the whole process of
agricultural production -- from seed to harvest -- is controlled,
he said, noting the zone will be expanded until the entire nation
is declared GMO -free.  'Farmers who are not in the zone but want
to participate in GMO -free production can  urge  authorities  to
closely control their farming,'  he said.  GMOs are a major issue
in Thailand as they  could  impact  foreign  trade,  agriculture,
consumption  and  the  environment.   On Monday,  the agriculture
ministry held a public hearing on GMOs,  in which more  than  700
participants,  including  government  officials,  academics,  and
nongovernmental organizations discussed how Thailand will  handle
the issue.  The GMO -free zone is to be set up as a means to make
sure  Thailand  is  clean  from  the modified plants,  since some
modified  seeds  have  reportedly  gotten  out  of   experimental
stations  and  plantations  and into domestic farms,  Newin said.
Thai canned tuna packed in soybean oil was recently  rejected  by
the   Netherlands  and  Greece  after  they  allegedly  found  it
contained genetically modified ingredients.  The  allegation  may
be  true  since  Thailand imports soybean from the United States,
where modified plants are common,  an official at the agriculture
ministry  said,  adding  Thailand  has  no capability to test for
genetically modified food.  Thai senior officials are accused  of
being  involved  in the illegal trading of modified plants and of
intentionally allowing modified seeds  out  of  the  experimental
plantations.   A special committee is conducting an investigation
on the allegation, Newin said,  adding all concerned parties will
be punished if the allegations are true.  According to Thailand's
Plant  Quarantine  Law,  modified  seeds  and plants,  for use in
experiments,  are to be quarantined.  People  found  distributing
the  organisms before they undergo safety checks can be sentenced
to two years in prison.