Genetic Modification of Foods for Improved Food Security and Wellness in Africa: Challenges and Prospects

Genetic Modification of Foods for Improved Food Security and Wellness in Africa: Challenges and Prospects

O. C. Aworh

Introduction

African countries with a total population of about 800 million and with annual population growth rates exceeding 2% are among the poorest, food insecure countries of the world. They have the greatest food demand but the least supply. About 200 million people in sub-Saharan Africa are chronically malnourished and an estimated 331 million people in Africa consume less than 2100 calories per day. Nutritional deficiency diseases including protein-energy malnutrition and micronutrient deficiencies (the hidden hunger) remain major public health concerns in most African countries for all age groups, but women and children are particularly vulnerable. Traditional weaning foods made from starchy roots and tubers and other dietary staples that are poor sources of protein are a leading cause of protein-energy malnutrition in infants and pre-school children. West Africa (168) and Central Africa (224 per 1000) have the highest under-5 mortality in the world. It is estimated that by 2015, 56% of all under-5 deaths will be in sub-Saharan Africa, a remarkable increase from 19% in 1970.  To a large extent, the alarmingly high infant and under-5 mortality rates in many African countries are attributable to gross under-nutrition and micronutrient deficiencies, especially vitamin A deficiency (VAD) and iron deficiency anemia (IDA). VAD is a serious threat to child survival when combined with other nutritional deficiencies and ill health, and if combined with zinc deficiency in particular, contributes to intrauterine malnutrition, leading to low birth weight or still birth. IDA in infants and children is associated with retarded physical growth, reduced resistance to infections and slow development of learning abilities. Maternal anemia leads to fetal growth retardation, low infant birth weight and increased prenatal mortality. Iodine deficiency disorder during pregnancy and in early childhood could result in irreversible impairment of brain development and is the single most important preventable cause of brain damage with profound consequences on societal development and quality of life of millions of people in Africa.

Apart from the development of new crop varieties with improved yield, pest and disease resistance, drought tolerance and other desirable agronomic traits and similar improvements in the desired features of farm animals and fish and other benefits to agriculture, genetic modification (GM) has impacted the food industry substantially through the development of custom-made agricultural raw materials that provide certain benefits to the food processor or consumers and the development of new food ingredients and products. The nutritional quality of dietary staples in Africa such as cassava that are deficient in protein and micronutrients can be enhanced by genetic modification.  While record increases in hectarages have occurred in the last 5 years in the leading GM crop countries of the USA, Brazil, Argentina, India and Canada, only three African countries ̶ South Africa, Burkina Faso and Egypt, have made significant progress in growing GM crops. While small, resource-poor farmers have benefitted from growing GM crops in some countries, the vast potential of genetic modification for increasing agricultural production and improving food security and wellness in Africa is yet to be exploited.

Biofortification

The development of nutritionally enhanced crop varieties, an approach known as biofortification, is a practical, sustainable, low-cost means of increasing access to micronutrients for poor rural communities in African countries that consume largely fresh fruits, vegetables, legumes, roots and tubers and other non-processed foods. Biofortification can be achieved either by conventional breeding or genetic modification; both approaches have unique capabilities and constraints especially in Africa. Conventional breeding has been used by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and the National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI), both in Nigeria, and the Colombia-based International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and other research institutions in different parts of the world for enhancing the levels of provitamin A carotenoids in cassava, sweet potato, maize, rice and banana. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) - sponsored HarvestPlus, a program of the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) established in 2004, is targetted at nutritional enhancement of African dietary staples including cassava, sweet potato, pearl millet, maize, wheat and beans. The BioCassava Plus (BC+) project, also supported by BMGF, and based at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center (DDPSC) St Louis, MO, USA with two key African partners, NRCRI and Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI), and other partners from different parts of the world, has biofortification of cassava as its main thrust. These research projects have clearly demonstrated that biofortification can be achieved through breeding and many of the biofortified products are now moving into a delivery phase. Sweet potato and maize biofortified with provitamin A carotenoids were well accepted by young children in rural Mozambique. Other micronutrients whose levels in African dietary staples have been increased through breeding include iron in cassava, banana and beans, and zinc in rice, pearl millet and wheat.

In spite of the gains that have been made in using conventional breeding for biofortification, there are limitations to the use of the technique including the very limited number of traits that can be improved at the same time and the long period required. Genetic modification allows more traits to be improved in much shorter periods of time and attains much higher levels of nutrient enhancement relative to conventional breeding. Apart from biofortification with provitamin A carotenoids, iron and protein, genetic modification of cassava has also involved improving other quality attributes including reducing cyanogenic glucosides, increasing starch content and delaying post-harvest deterioration that will have major impacts on the food value, shelf life and utilisation of the crop. Genetic modification allows nutrient enhancement, quality improvement and other desirable changes such as resistance to pests and diseases (especially cassava mosaic disease) to be achieved in cassava varieties over a short period of time with profound consequences for cassava production and utilisation in Africa. The impact of cassava mosaic disease in endemic areas in Africa can be devastating; reducing yield to as low as 4 t/ha or less compared with the normal average yield of 8 t/ha. GM cassava is currently undergoing confined field trials in Nigeria, the world’s largest producer of the crop with an annual production of 34-40 Mt, and in Kenya. Genetic modification has also been used for biofortification of other dietary staples in Africa including maize, beans and rice. GM ‘Golden Rice 2’ containing up to 37 µg/g total carotenoids, which is 23-fold higher than the original ‘Golden Rice’, could greatly reduce the prevalence of VAD in Africa by contributing to meeting the recommended dietary allowance of vitamin A for infants and pre-school children (300 µg) and other vulnerable groups.   

Public Perception

In general, the public is not well-informed about GM foods in Nigeria and many other African countries. Even though there is no credible scientific evidence that GM foods or food ingredients are any less safe than traditional foods or ingredients or that GM organisms create environmental problems, most educated Nigerians view GM technology with suspicion fuelled largely by misleading reports from the print and electronic media and some non-governmental organisations. For example, one of Nigeria’s leading newspapers, The Punch, in an editorial in its issue of 17 September  2009 entitled ‘Biotechnology, a dangerous gamble’ stated that “genetic material (DNA) from pathogenic viruses” are used for genetic engineering, giving the impression that GM foods are unsafe because they contain elements of pathogenic viruses. The paper concluded that “there is no conclusive evidence that the output of such processes (genetic engineering) would be altogether healthful for the human system” and “that nothing of that technology is required to deal with the high incidence of hunger and undernourishment in the country” and called for the disbandment of the “Biotechnology Strategy Committee.” Obviously, there is a need for honesty, openness and greater public debate on genetic modification of foods in Nigeria and many other African countries if the technology is to be widely adopted and the desired benefits realised since public opinion has a great influence on the development of new technologies.

Regulation

The lack of a regulatory framework in many African countries is a major constraint to successful adoption of GM technology. The majority of African countries are ill-equipped in terms of regulatory systems for controlling possible adverse effects of genetic modification. GM crops must go through a rigorous research, testing, safety assessment, screening and market evaluation before they are released to farmers and consumers. The process is very cumbersome and expensive and the requisite regulatory authority, enabling policy, facilities and expertise are lacking in many African countries. Moreover, the rules and regulations established around the world for control and handling of GM crops are very demanding and the implementation of international agreements for the regulation of GM foods and ingredients and processes for genetic modification of plants, animals and microorganisms at the national or regional level is a complex issue. In effect, there are regulatory hurdles that GM crops will have to face before they become widely available to farmers and consumers in Africa.

Transfer of Technology

Technology assessment, transfer processes, intellectual property rights and the right of farmers to have free access to the technology are critical issues in the successful adoption of GM technology in Africa. Farmers, as key stakeholders, should be involved right from the onset in the technology development process in order to identify challenges to successful adoption of the technology. Adequate provision of extension services is crucial and identifying the right germplasm based on consultation with farmers will save time and facilitate speedy adoption of newly transformed traits. Intellectual property rights issues and the cost of distributing improved varieties to farmers and the role of “big business” in patenting GM organisms and preventing public access to GM technology are significant challenges to the successful adoption of GM technology in Africa. The notion of distributing improved varieties of GM crops to farmers for humanitarian purposes, either free or at a small cost, may not always be an option and African governments must have a long-term perspective to the development and transfer of technology and must be willing to invest appropriately.

Conclusion

Genetic modification offers unique advantages for improving food security and promoting the health of millions in Africa. However, public perception and concern about safety of GM foods, lack of a regulatory framework, the role of “big business” and issues relating to intellectual property rights and transfer of technology constrain the use of genetic modification for increasing agricultural production and development of new agricultural raw materials with improved nutritional properties for combating hidden hunger and other nutritional deficiencies and improving food security and wellness in Africa.

Sources of Information

Adenle, AA, Aworh, OC, Akromah, R and Parayil, G (2012) Developing GM super cassava for improved health and food security: future challenges in Africa. http://www.agricultureandfoodsecurity.com/content/1/1/11.Website accessed 2 July 2013.

Aworh, OC (2010) Food Technology and National Development: A Global Perspective. Ibadan University Press Publishing House, Ibadan: 136 pp.

Food Basket Foundation International (2010) African Regional Nutrition Strategy 2005-2015. West African J Foods Nutr. 11 (1): 6-27.

IUFoST (2010). Scientific Information Bulletin “Biotechnology and Food.” http://www.iufost.org/sites/default/files/docs/IUF.SIB.Biotechnology.rev.pdf. Website accessed 2 July 2013. 

Murray, CJL, Laakso, T, Shibuya, K, Hill, K and Lopez, AD (2007) Can we achieve millennium development goal 4? New analysis of country trends and forecasts of under-5 mortality to 2015. Lancet 370: 1040-1054.

Dr Ogugua Charles Aworh is Professor and former Head of the Department of Food Technology, University of Ibadan and is currently the Chairman of the Multidisciplinary Central Research Laboratory, University of Ibadan; he is a Fellow of the International Academy of Food Science and Technology and Chairman of the Body of Fellows of the Nigerian Institute of Food Science and Technology; Email: ocawo51@yahoo.co.uk