Concerns about the so-called genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) including Bt Corn, should be addressed in a scientific manner and not just by way of guesswork, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Pimentel Jr. said.

Pimentel spoke at the First Forum of Bishops with Scientists at the Manila Hotel which sought to discuss the potentials of GMOs or more specifically the Bt Corns for producing better and cheaper food and the possible dangers that they pose to mankind.

"As a legislator, I think it is part of our duty to help spread the truth about the things that have the potential to make cheap and safe food available to our people, and to inform them of things that endanger their health and welfare lurking behind the curtain of scientific experiments that are now done in our own backyard, " he said.

Saying he has no preconceived notions as to the goodness or the evils of GMOs, Pimentel said it was his understanding the Bt-Corn experimentations are being done to find out how corn can be made resistant to ordinary plant diseases and therefore to make it productive for animal feed, if not, for human food.

However, he noted that there are fears that in the process of experimentation, poisons are spread to nearby nonexperimental corn farms that endanger the crops there directly or make them more dependent on pesticides or farm inputs that are imported from foreign producers. 


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