Groups Support Moratorium On Taro Testing

HONOLULU -- More than 100 people showed up on Wednesday to testify on a bill to impose a 10-year moratorium on developing, testing and cultivating genetically engineered taro in Hawaii.

Taro farmers supporting the moratorium demonstrated traditional Hawaiian poi making. Some carried taro plants.

Supporters said the moratorium would buy time to study how cross-pollination of native varieties and genetically modified taro would affect plants.

"I think we have to focus on what a moratorium means. A moratorium just means 'Let's answer some questions before we move ahead too fast,'" taro farmer Paul Reppun said.

"We have already agreed not to do any genetic engineering research on taro, any genetic research that we do on non-Hawaiian taro will not be field tested in Hawaii. So there is no chance there will be any cross pollination," University of Hawaii Tropical Agriculture Dean Andrew Hashimoto said.

Opponents said a 10-year moratorium would stop important research to address serious threats such as the taro leaf blight that wiped out 90 percent of Samoa's taro crop.