KORONADAL CITY - After four years of evaluation, the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), an attached agency of the Department of Agriculture, which is tasked with approving biotechnology products, has allowed the propagation in the country of Roundup Ready corn developed by the Monsanto Co.

Roundup Ready corn is the second biotech products of Monsanto approved by BPI for commercialization in the Philippines, the first being the controversial Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) corn cleared for propagation in late 2002.

A statement posted at the firm's website (Monsanto.com) last week said that "this approval is expected to lead to an increased number of biotechnology acres planted in the country as growers realize the value of the technology."

"The new approval in the Philippines indicates that countries around the world continue to recognize the safety and benefits of agricultural biotechnology products," said Brett Begemann, executive vice president for international commercial of Monsanto.

Begemann said the approval came after a four-year process under the strict supervision and oversight of the National Committee on Biosafety of the Philippines and agencies of the DA.

Experiments for Roundup Ready corn were done at the firm's field test site in Tampakan, South Cotabato where Bt corn was also tested but later uprooted by militant groups opposing the transgenic plant.

Late last month, local company officials allowed several mediamen to visit the Roundup Ready corn test site in the town, which was secured by wire fences and away from residential areas.

Ronaldo Cayomo, Monsanto-Mindanao team leader, said the variety will be resistant to Roundup, a herbicide also developed by Monsanto. He explained that by spraying the weed-killing product, the Roundup Ready corn will not get affected, unlike other varieties.

Begemann said the approval of their latest corn product in the Philippines means that "Filipino farmers now have access to the most advanced agriculture technology available in Asia, in support of the national government's focus on food security and poverty alleviation."

According to the firm's statement, Roundup Ready crops allow growers to use Roundup glyphosate-based agricultural herbicides over the top of growing plants, thereby offering more effective weed control with an herbicide that has "a favorable environmental profile."

In December 2002 Yieldgard Corn Borer insect-protected corn was approved for propagation, which set a milestone for Philippine agriculture as the first biotech food crop approved in Asia, added the statement.

The company said that Yieldgard Corn Borer corn was planted on 54,000 hectares (133,000 acres) in 2004, benefiting mostly small-holder Filipino farmers.

It added that the product has a demonstrated ability "to improve both yields and quality of grain that, in turn, increases growers' incomes." Together [Bt corn and Roundup Ready corn], these technologies will set the stage for enhanced production of crops that will assist in achieving food security and the acceleration of the agricultural economy, Monsanto said.

The Philippines currently imports 1 million metric tons of corn every year, according to the statement.

According to the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications, the estimated global area of approved biotech crops for 2004 was 81 million hectares (200 million acres), up from 67.7 million hectares (167 million acres) in 2003.

Biotech crops were grown by approximately 8.25 million farmers in 17 countries during 2004, with 90 percent of the farmers being resource-poor farmers in developing countries.