Coming soon to a political podium near you — a return to the debate over whether and when genetically modified wheat should be developed and put on the market.
With the debate about wheat marketing structures in Canada largely behind the industry (several outstanding lawsuits notwithstanding), an international coalition of grain organizations is preparing another public plea for political courage to begin the debate about introducing GM wheat.
The call for a debate from Grain Growers of Canada and allies in the American and Australian grain industries and possibly support from Argentina and at least one European group could come later this year or early next year.
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It will launch a divisive and fiery debate about the alleged benefits and dangers of biotechnology in the food system.
Would GM wheat be safe and consumer acceptable? From a commercial perspective, would it scare off GM-adverse customers around the world where Canada’s crop is marketed?
And unlike the last time this was debated in Canada a half decade ago, one of the strongest voices against approving GM wheat will be diminished.
The Canadian Wheat Board was a strong opponent, arguing that many of its customers would refuse to buy Canadian wheat if there was a chance GM product could be included deliberately or inadvertently.
Now, with the loss of its monopoly, the CWB is just one of many grain company voices in the debate and a minority voice at that.
Private grain and seed companies that have been working on GM wheat varieties likely will remain largely silent in the pending debate.
The face of the push for approval of the product will be grain grower organizations that believe in the science and the potential of the innovation. Of course, the industry is divided and it will face its critics.
More than three years ago, Canadian, American and Australian grain groups called for commercialization of GM wheat as a way to move the sector forward. They said that the industry was falling behind because of the inability to develop new varieties to increase yields, deal with climatic conditions and leave less of an environmental footprint.
Those groups, with a few new outriders from other countries, are preparing to make the pitch again in an international call to action, arguing that a more productive wheat sector is crucial for the world’s goal of feeding billions more people over the next several decades.
They acknowledge that the road ahead will be tough slogging, filled with GM opponents, consumer resistance and government wariness.
They will have to find room for producers who want to produce non-GM varieties and do not want to get caught up in GM trade restrictions. That would require an agreement on a low-level GM presence in shipments that would not trigger retaliation.
And they will have to spend a decade or more trying to convince skittish customers that the product is safe, GM products are needed in a food-deficient world and scientific and regulatory controls are robust.
Opponents will have their own arsenal of facts and fears.
So far, the opponents have won the day around the world.
Industry forces are planning a counter-attack soon.
It will be a battle royal.
