POSITION PAPER

Delegation: Cyprus
Committee: World Health Organization
Topic Area A: Biofortification: A Solution to Malnutrition?

As we know, malnutrition has become an issue discussed by the majority of countries

in the world, ranging from developing countries or developed countries. Almost the entire
country felt the impact of this issue, which makes this is a massive problem that the world
community faces today. Malnutrition is estimated to contribute to more than one third of all
child deaths, although it is rarely listed as the direct cause. Lack of access to highly nutritious
foods, especially in the present context of rising food prices, is a common cause of
malnutrition. Faced with this problem, a solution emerged called biofortification. Cyprus
perceives the importance of countries to provide its people, especially children, regarding
access to a well-balanced diet with the nutrients they need, to be able to develop properly.
But there are some problem occurred aligned with this solution. We see that there may
occasionally be difficulties in getting biofortified foods to be accepted if there are still some
questions remain whether or not biofortification and genetically modified organisms (GMOs)
are safe, effective and applicable solutions to be implemented.

Western and Eastern developed nations alike outside of the European Union have
generally demonstrated a comfort for the use of genetically modified crops. For example, in
some nations, where the Food and Drug Administration has set a protocol for safety
determination and regulation of GMOs, genetically engineered plants were introduced into
the food supply circa the late 1990s. Given the support of technological innovation by such
regulating organizations, Cyprus and other developed nations have benefited economically
from the integration of genetically engineered foods into production on consumption within
the country. Though the long-term health effects of GM crops remain to be determined,
current policy is indicative of clear favorability toward interventions involving
biofortification.

Cyprus believes that biofortification is a sustainable long-term strategy aimed at

increasing the micronutrient intake of large numbers of people throughout their lives,
contributing to an overall reduction in micronutrient deficiencies in a population. The
introduction of specific biofortified crops will provide a sustainable and low-cost way of
reaching people with poor access to formal markets or healthcare systems. Once the
investment has been made in developing nutritionally improved varieties at central research
locations, seeds can be adapted to the local growing conditions in numerous countries.
Biofortified varieties can then provide benefits year after year throughout the developing
world at a lower cost than either dietary supplements or fortification through food processing.
Farmers’ participation is also important in determining the success of the project, and one
way to ensure that farmers will like the new varieties is to give them a say about what traits
are bred into the plants. Regarding issues about GMO, we see that it is important for nations
to cooperate on doing further research to reduce the contamination and increase the safety of
GM crops. This could take a while, but must be implemented only if the result are completely
safe. In the mean time, nations could apply the conventional biofortification instead of using
genetic engineering. Nations could also start considering a GMO-free test and certification on
organic products for labelling. However, most importantly, Brazil also believes that the
government also plays an important role in determining the success of the project. In several
nations, the national authority has obliged its agricultural sector to include biofortification as
its main agenda.