Biotech Firm Raises Furor With Rice Plan
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060514/ap_on_sc/biopharming_dilemma;_ylt=A9FJqZ1wpWdEpwUA1QSs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTA3MzV0MTdmBHNlYwM3NTM-
By PAUL ELIAS, AP Biotechnology Writer
SAN FRANCISCO - In its quest to genetically engineer rice with human genes to produce a treatment for childhood diarrhea, tiny Ventria Bioscience has made an astonishing number of powerful enemies spanning the political spectrum.
Environmental groups, corporate food interests and thousands of farmers across the country have succeeded in chasing the company's rice farms out of two states. And critics continue to complain that Ventria is recklessly plowing ahead with a mostly untested technology that threatens the safety of conventional crops grown for the food supply.
"We just want them to go away,"