StarLink corn recall - wikipedia StarLink corn recall The StarLink corn recalls occurred in the autumn of 2000, when over 300 food products were found to contain a genetically modified corn that had not been approved for human consumption. It was the first - ever recall of a genetically modified food. The anti-GMO activist coalition Genetically Engineered Food Alert, which detected and first reported the contamination, was critical of the FDA for not doing its job. The recall of Taco Bell - branded taco shells, manufactured by Kraft Foods and sold in supermarkets, was the most publicized of the recalls. One settlement resulted in $60 million going to Taco Bell franchisees for lost sales due to the damage to the Taco Bell brand. Contents 1 StarLink corn 2 Product recalls 3 Aventis recall / buyback 4 Aftermath 5 Later incidents 6 See also 7 References StarLink corn StarLink is a genetically modified maize, containing two modifications : a gene for resistance to glufosinate, and a variant of the bacillus thuringiensis ( Bt ) protein called Cry9C. Cry9C had not been used in a GM crop prior to StarLink, causing heightened regulatory scrutiny. StarLink 's creator, Plant Genetic Systems, which later became Aventis CropScience during the time of the incident, had applied to the US Environmental Protection Agency ( EPA ) to market StarLink for use in animal feed and in the human food supply. However, because the Cry9C protein lingers in the digestive system before breaking down, the EPA had concerns about its allergenicity, and PGS did not provide sufficient data to prove that Cry9C was not allergenic. As a result, PGS split its application into separate permits for use in food and use in animal feed only. StarLink was approved by the EPA for use in animal feed only in May 1998. After the incident the company at first tried to get the application for human consumption approved, and then withdrew the product entirely from the market. The Garst Seed Company ( part of the Advanta group ) was licensed by Aventis to produce and sell StarLink seed in the US. Product recalls A taco with a hard taco shell In 2000, Genetically Engineered Food Alert was launched by seven organizations ( Center for Food Safety, Friends of the Earth, Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, National Environmental Trust, Organic Consumers Association, Pesticide Action Network North America, and The State PIRGs ) to lobby the FDA, Congress and companies to ban or stop using GMOs. One of their activities was testing food for the presence of GMOs via a lab called Genetic ID, the vice president of which was Jeffrey M. Smith. On September 18, 2000, Genetically Engineered Food Alert released a statement that Genetic ID had conducted tests on `` Taco Bell Home Originals '' brand taco shells, made by Kraft Foods that had been purchased in a grocery store near Washington, DC, and had detected StarLink ; the story was reported on by The Washington Post. Kraft distributed the Taco Bell - branded taco shells under a 1996 license agreement with Taco Bell. Kraft had bought the shells from a Sabritas plant in Mexicali which used flour supplied from an Azteca mill plant in Plainview, Texas. The Texas mill used flour from six states supplied by elevators that did not segregate their genetically modified and conventionally - grown corn at the time. Kraft also suspended production of the recalled products. `` All of us -- government, industry and the scientific community -- need to work on ways to prevent this kind of situation from ever happening again, '' said Betsy Holden, Kraft 's chief executive in September 2000. She also stated that food safety and legal compliance were Kraft 's main priority. Safeway later announced it would recall its store brand taco shells at the recommendation of a consumer group on October 12, 2000. This was done as a precaution, and no StarLink was confirmed to be found in any of the products On October 13 and 14, Mission Foods voluntary recalled about 300 products. On October 22, 2000 it was reported that Kellogg 's had shut down a plant as a precaution because they could n't guarantee that StarLink corn flour had not been supplied to the plant. On October 26, 2000 StarLink corn was reported to be found in Japan and South Korea. The market and distribution network for corn in the US was thrown into disarray through 2001, as there were no existing means to segregate the grain ; the disarray eventually eased due to the Aventis ' testing and buyback program discussed below. Aventis recall / buyback In January 2001 under a written agreement with 17 US states, Aventis initiated a program called the StarLink Enhanced Stewardship ( SES ) program, under which StarLink corn, buffer corn, and any corn stored in grain elevators that had become mixed with StarLink, would be bought by Aventis and directed to animal feed and non-food industrial use ( e.g. ethanol production ) ; the program included free kits to test for StarLink, and covered costs of cleaning equipment, transport, and storage facilities, as well as increased transportation costs. Aventis estimated the cost would be between $100 million to $1 billion. It was estimated that due to grain mixing StarLink corn could have existed in more than 50 % of the US corn supply and that overall, the StarLink incident depressed the price of US corn about 7 % for about a year. Aftermath Following the recalls, 51 people reported adverse effects to the FDA ; these reports were reviewed by the US Centers for Disease Control ( CDC ), which determined that 28 of them were possibly related to StarLink. The CDC studied the blood of these 28 individuals and concluded there was no evidence the reactions these people experienced were associated with hypersensitivity to the StarLink Bt protein. The EPA was criticized by Joseph Mendelson III of the Center for Food Safety, who said `` Clearly they did n't do anything here until they became embarrassed. '' The EPA and Aventis were also criticized for statements at the time of the recall that indicated they had no idea such a thing would happen. `` If there has been a violation of our licensing process, then we would have a very great concern, '' was attributed to Stephen Johnson of the EPA. Margaret Gadsby of Aventis was quoted with her earlier statement `` We have difficulty imagining how our corn could end up in the human food supply. '' The registration for the StarLink varieties was voluntarily withdrawn by Aventis in October 2000. In February 2001, it was announced that the president, general counsel, and vice president of market development for Aventis CropScience ( US ), had been fired in response to the recall. In June 2001 Tricon Global Restaurants, 20 % owners of Taco Bell at the time, announced a $60 million settlement with some of the suppliers of the supermarket taco shells ; under the terms of the settlement they could not disclose the identity of suppliers. Tricon stated that the settlement would go to Taco Bell franchisees and Tricon would not receive any of it. Tricon also announced that it, along with the suppliers and franchisees, would initiate litigation against the parties responsible for StarLink entering the food chain. In September 2001, a group of about 5,000 Taco Bell franchisees and a handful of taco shell suppliers brought a class - action lawsuit against Aventis, Garst Seed Co. ; Gruma Corp., ( `` the largest producer and distributor of corn flour and tortillas in the United States ; and Azteca Milling seeking damages. This suit was voluntarily dismissed in December 2001. In 2002, Aventis, Garst, Kraft Foods, Azteca Foods, Azteca Milling, and Mission Foods settled a lawsuit brought by two people, and the grandmother of a third, who claimed to have had allergic reactions to StarLink, for $9 million. In 2002, nongovernmental organizations claimed that aid sent by the UN and the US to Central American nations also contained some StarLink corn. The nations involved, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala refused to accept the aid. In 2003, farmers who did not plant StarLink who had suffered economic losses due to depressed corn prices following the StarLink recalls settled a class - action lawsuit against Aventis and Advanta for $100 million. GeneWatch UK and Greenpeace International set up the GM Contamination Register in 2005 citing these recalls as one of the `` highlights '' of the register. The US corn supply was monitored by the Federal Grain Inspection Service for the presence of the StarLink Bt proteins from 2001 until 2010. Later incidents In August 2013, StarLink corn was reported to be found again contaminating some foods in Saudi Arabia. See also Genetically modified organism containment and escape Fair Packaging and Labeling Act ( US ) Genetically modified food controversies Regulation of the release of genetically modified organisms References Jump up ^ Andrew Pollack for the New York Times. September 23, 2000 Kraft Recalls Taco Shells With Bioengineered Corn ^ Jump up to : Staff, Cornell Cooperative Extension, 2002. Genetically Engineered Foods : StarLink Corn in Taco Shells ^ Jump up to : Department of Soil and Crop Sciences at Colorado State University, Page last updated March 11, 2004 StarLink Corn ^ Jump up to : Michael R. Taylor and Jody S. Tick of Resources for the Future, Pew Initiative on Food and Biotechnology. The StarLink Case : Issues for the Future Jump up ^ `` While EPA had no specific data to indicate that Cry9C was an allergen, the protein expressed in StarLink corn did exhibit certain characteristics ( i.e. relative heat stability and extended time to digestion ) that were common to known food allergens such as those found in peanuts, eggs, etc. EPA 's concern was that StarLink corn may be a human food allergen and in the absence of more definitive data, EPA has not made a decision whether or not to register the human food use. '' Staff, EPA. November 2000 Executive Summary : EPA Preliminary Evaluation of Information Contained in the October 25, 2000 Submission from Aventis Cropscience Jump up ^ Plant Genetic Systems ( America ) Inc. : PP 7G4921 Federal Register Vol. 62, No. 228, November 26, 1997 pp 63169 bottom of middle column - 63170 right column ; see especially p63169 top of right column Jump up ^ Marion Nestle. Safe Food : The Politics of Food Safety University of California Press, 2010 Jump up ^ Internet Archive capture of Genetically Engineered Food Alert webpage, August 17, 2000 Jump up ^ Margot Roosevelt for Time Magazine. Monday, Jul. 31, 2000 Inside The Protests : Taking It To Main Street Jump up ^ Staff, The Progress Report. New Coalition Acts Against GM Food Dangers Jump up ^ Andrew Pollack for the New York Times. October 12, 2000 Safeway Recalls Taco Shells After Test Questions Corn Origin ^ Jump up to : Marc Kaufman for the Washington Post. September 18, 2000 Biotech Critics Cite Unapproved Corn in Taco Shells ; Gene - Modified Variety Allowed Only for Animal Feed Because of Allergy Concerns Jump up ^ Press Release Contaminant found in Taco Bell taco shells. Food safety coalition demands recall ( press release ) Washington, DC : Friends of the Earth, 2000. Available : 3 November 2001. Jump up ^ Management Communication - A Case Analysis Approach, 5th Ed, James S. O'Rourke, IV Jump up ^ Kraft Foods Press Release September 25, 2000 Press Release : USA : Kraft Foods announces voluntary recall of all Taco Bell Taco Shell products from grocery stores Jump up ^ Fulmer, M. ( September 23, 2000 ). `` Taco Bell Recalls Shells That Used Bioengineered Corn ''. The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 3, 2013. Jump up ^ Staff, CNN October 18, 2000 ConAgra stops producing corn flour at Kansas mill as precaution against genetically modified grain Jump up ^ Philip Brasher for ABC News. September 23, 2000. Kraft Recalls Biotech Taco Shells Jump up ^ Staff, CNN. October 12, 2000 Safeway recalls its taco shells Jump up ^ Staff, CNN. November 1, 2000 Scope of biotech corn product recall revealed : More than 300 items on FDA list Jump up ^ Staff, CNN. November 1, 2000 FDA list of recalled products for `` Tortillas, Shells, Tostadas, and Chips Recall # F - 023 / 026 - 1 '' Jump up ^ Staff, CNN October 22, 2000. Kellogg 's plant stops production after engineered - corn scare Jump up ^ David Barboza for the New York Times. December 11, 2000 Gene - Altered Corn Changes Dynamics Of Grain Industrypagewanted = all&src = pm Jump up ^ WIlliam Lin, Gregory K. Price, and Edward Allen. StarLink : Impacts on the U.S. Corn Market and World Trade ( 2001 ). pp 46 - 54 in Feed Situation and Outlook Yearbook, April 2001 by United States Dept. of Agriculture Economic Research Service Jump up ^ William Lin, Gregory K. Price, Edward W. Allen StarLink : Impacts on the U.S. corn market and world trade ( 2003 ) Agribusiness 01 / 2003 ; 19 ( 4 ) : 473 - 488. Jump up ^ Michael Howie for Feedstuffs. January 29, 2001 Aventis, states reach agreement over StarLink corn Jump up ^ D.L. Uchtmann. StarLink : A Case Study of Agricultural Biotechnology regulation Drake Journal of Agricultural Law Vol. 7, 2002 : 159 - 211 Jump up ^ Philip Brasher for ABC News. September 29, 2000. Biotech Company to Reimburse Farmers for Banned Corn Jump up ^ Sarah Lueck, Amy Merrick, Joel Millman And Stephen D. Moore for the Wall Street Journal. November 3, 2000. Corn - Recall Cost Could Reach Into the Hundreds of Millions Jump up ^ Note : Despite long searching, as of October 2013 editors could find no reliable source reporting on the actual cost of the StarLink buyback to Aventis. The task is complicated due to the sale of Aventis CropScience to Bayer in October 2001, in which Aventis agreed to retain liability for matters related to StarLink ( CNN News, October 2, 2001 ), the subsequent merger of Sanofi and Aventis in 2004 ( Sanofi company history, Official site ), and the fact that Aventis and Sanofi are not US companies and their regulatory filings are not in English. In a financial regulatory filing submitted to the US Securities and Exchange Commission in March 2003, in which Aventis provided consolidated financial reporting for the years 2000 - 2002, Aventis described the sale of Aventis CropScience to Bayer and communicated that it had indemnified Bayer for all matters related to StarLink and other environmental liabilities and that the sale had netted Aventis € 4.2 B, and `` This sale resulted in a gain for Aventis of € 2.07 billion after provisions for indemnification related to the StarLink litigation, as well as environmental, tax, and product liability indemnification as stipulated in the Share Purchase Agreement between Aventis and Bayer. '' ( Aventis Form F - 20 for calendar years 2000 - 2002, F - 43 ) Therefore Aventis seems to have reserved about € 2.1 B euros in 2003, which at that time was US $2.3 B. Jump up ^ Colin A. Carter and Aaron Smith Estimating the Market Effect of a Food Scare : The Case of Genetically Modified StarLink Corn. The Review of Economics and Statistics Aug., 2007 Vol. 89 ( 3 ) : 522 - 533 Jump up ^ Staff, EPA review committee. LLP Incidents Jump up ^ CDC, National Center for Environmental Health. Investigation of Human Health Effects Associated with Potential Exposure to Genetically Modified Corn : A Report to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Atlanta, GA : Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2001. Jump up ^ Pollack, Andrew ( September 4, 2001 ), Altered Corn Surfaced Earlier, New York : New York Times, p. 1, retrieved August 7, 2013 Jump up ^ Pollack, Andrew ( September 4, 2001 ), Altered Corn Surfaced Earlier, New York : New York Times, p. 2, retrieved August 7, 2013 Jump up ^ Janet E. Carpenter and Leonard P. Gianessi, US National Center for Food and Agricultural Policy. 2001. Agricultural Biotechnology : Updated Benefit Estimates, Jump up ^ Clark, A. ; Martinson, J. ( February 12, 2001 ). `` Aventis chiefs in GM blunder sacked ''. The Guardian. Retrieved August 7, 2013. Jump up ^ Taco Bell Rings up $60 Million for StarLink - Contaminated Shells, Louisville, KY : Virgo Publishing, June 12, 2001, retrieved August 7, 2013 Jump up ^ Associated Press, September 19, 2001. Taco Bell Sues Over StarLink Corn Fiasco Jump up ^ Gruma Gruma Annual Report for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2002, Form 20 - F Jump up ^ Staff, Livestock Weekly. March 14, 2002 Judge Okays $9 Million Payoff In Lawsuit Over StarLink Corn Jump up ^ Jennifer Clapp. Hunger in the Balance : The New Politics of International Food Aid. Cornell University Press, 2012 ISBN 9780801464409 Jump up ^ Staff, Farm and Dairy News. March 27, 2003 StarLink in class action settlement Jump up ^ `` First on - line worldwide register of GM contamination incidents launched today ''. genewatch.org. Retrieved 23 September 2013. Jump up ^ `` StarLink Corn Regulatory Information ''. Environmental Protection Agency ( EPA ). April 2008. Jump up ^ http://www.usda.gov/documents/LLP%20Incidents%202.docx Jump up ^ Elsanhoty, R.M. ; Al - Turki, A.I. ; Ramadan, M.F. ( 2013 ). `` Prevalence of Genetically Modified Rice, Maize, and Soy in Saudi Food Products ''. Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology. 171 ( 4 ) : 883. doi : 10.1007 / s12010 - 013 - 0405 - x. PMID 23904260. Food safety Adulterants, food contaminants 3 - MCPD Aldicarb Cyanide Formaldehyde Lead poisoning Melamine Mercury in fish Sudan I Flavorings Monosodium glutamate ( MSG ) Salt Sugar High - fructose corn syrup Microorganisms Botulism Campylobacter jejuni Clostridium perfringens Escherichia coli O104 : H4 Escherichia coli O157 : H7 Hepatitis A Hepatitis E Listeria Norovirus Rotavirus Salmonella Parasitic infections through food Amoebiasis Anisakiasis Cryptosporidiosis Cyclosporiasis Diphyllobothriasis Enterobiasis Fasciolopsiasis Fasciolosis Giardiasis Gnathostomiasis Paragonimiasis Toxoplasmosis Trichinosis Trichuriasis Pesticides Chlorpyrifos DDT Lindane Malathion Methamidophos Preservatives Benzoic acid Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid ( EDTA ) Sodium benzoate Sugar substitutes Acesulfame potassium Aspartame Saccharin Sodium cyclamate Sorbitol Sucralose Toxins, poisons, environment pollution Aflatoxin Arsenic contamination of groundwater Benzene in soft drinks Bisphenol A Dieldrin Diethylstilbestrol Dioxin Mycotoxins Nonylphenol Shellfish poisoning Food contamination incidents Devon colic Swill milk scandal 1858 Bradford sweets poisoning 1900 English beer poisoning Morinaga Milk arsenic poisoning incident Minamata disease 1971 Iraq poison grain disaster Toxic oil syndrome 1993 Jack in the Box E. coli outbreak 1996 Odwalla E. coli outbreak 2006 North American E. coli outbreaks ICA meat repackaging controversy 2008 Canada listeriosis outbreak 2008 Chinese milk scandal 2008 Irish pork crisis 2008 United States salmonellosis outbreak 2011 Germany E. coli outbreak 2011 Taiwan food scandal 2011 United States listeriosis outbreak 2013 Bihar school meal poisoning 2013 horse meat scandal 2013 Taiwan food scandal 2014 Taiwan food scandal 2017 Brazil weak meat scandal 2017 -- 18 South African listeriosis outbreak Food safety incidents in China Foodborne illness outbreaks death toll United States Regulation, standards, watchdogs Acceptable daily intake E number Food labeling regulations Food libel laws International Food Safety Network ISO 22000 Quality Assurance International Institutions Centre for Food Safety European Food Safety Authority Institute for Food Safety and Health International Food Safety Network Ministry of Food and Drug Safety Genetic engineering Genetically modified organisms Crops Maize MON 810 MON 863 StarLink List of varieties of genetically modified maize Potato Amflora Rice Golden rice Soybean Roundup ready soybean Vistive Gold Tomato Flavr Savr Cotton Bt cotton Other Apple Arabidopsis Brinjal Canola Papaya Rose SmartStax Sugar beet Tobacco Trees Wheat Mammals Mouse Knockout mouse Oncomouse Enviropig Herman the Bull Knockout rat Other animals Insects Fish Glofish Salmon Birds Frogs Bacteria and viruses Ice - minus bacteria Hepatitis B vaccine Oncolytic virus Processes Inserting DNA Agrobacteria Biolistics Electroporation Genetic transduction Lipofection Microinjection Somatic cell nuclear transfer Transfection Types Recombinant DNA Transgenesis Cisgenesis Uses In agriculture Genetically modified food Controversies Pharming Companies BASF Bayer Dow AgroSciences DuPont Pioneer Monsanto Syngenta In humans and diagnostics Gene therapy Genetic enhancement In research Gene knockout Gene knockdown Gene targeting Related articles Transgene Detection of genetically modified organisms Genetic pollution Genetic engineering in fiction Human enhancement Reverse transfection Transhumanism Regulation Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety Geography Europe Africa Asia North America ( US ) South America Oceania Similar fields Synthetic biology Cloning Stem cell research Biology Genetics Biotechnology Bioethics Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=StarLink_corn_recall&oldid=815639606 '' Categories : Food recalls Food safety scandals Food safety in the United States Genetic engineering in the United States Genetically modified organisms in agriculture Product liability Regulation of genetically modified organisms Taco Bell 2000 in biotechnology Talk Contents About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 16 December 2017, at 02 : 46. 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Question: what is the main issue behind starlink corn
Answer: over 300 food products were found to contain a genetically modified corn that had not been approved for human consumption; over 300 food products were found to contain a genetically modified corn that had not been approved for human consumption