A group opposed to the cultivation of genetically modified (GM) eggplant Sunday urged Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala to stop field trials of the vegetable in six testing sites in the country.

The Southeast Asian Regional Initiatives for Community Empowerment (Searice) made the appeal over the weekend in the hope of convincing Alcala to scrap the tests and junk any move to commercialize the production of the GM eggplant.

Alcala is an advocate of organic farming while Searice has been pushing the retention of local farming practices and greater control on agricultural production by local farmers using traditional crops and methods.

Searice has started a signature campaign to ask Alcala to dismantle the cultivation of the fruit and shoot borer-resistant (FSBR) Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) eggplant in the following areas: Sta. Maria, Pangasinan; UP Los Baños; Pili, Camarines Sur; Sta. Barbara, Iloilo; Baybay, Leyte; UP Mindanao, and; University of Southern Mindanao in Kabacan, North Cotabato.

However, Searice's opposition to Bt eggplant rests on nagging fears that the vegetable, developed by Mahyco, would harbor substances that cause liver, blood and stomach problems based on what happened to Bt brinjal, an eggplant that was crossed with Bt eggplant from the Philippines and tested in India.

The group's opposition to Bt eggplant is reminiscent of the spirited campaign launched against Bt corn in 2003. No scientific evidence was produced by the oppositors to justify any ban on the biotech crop.

Just last week, the European Union (EU) allowed the cultivation of six biotech corn varieties upon learning that Bt corn did not pose any health risk on consumers and farmers.

Since 2003, the area devoted to Bt corn in the Philippines had been increasing and recently hit 400,000 hectares.

Searice claimed that tests on Bt eggplant had been kept away from public scrutiny and even claimed the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) had not released information about the project. It added that there was no public consultation about the cultivation of Bt eggplant.