Are plants expressing the Bt toxin safe for human consumption?
The Bt, or Bacillus thuringiensis family of insecticidal proteins are naturally occurring proteins which are included as the active insecticidal agent in certain commercial pest control products. These have been used safely for more than 30 years to control insect pests by home gardeners, organic growers and other farmers and are known to specifically effect certain insect pests . The Bt proteins introduced into plants are toxic to certain species of insects yet are harmless to humans and are digested like other proteins in the human digestive system. Health Canada has thoroughly reviewed potatoes, corn, cotton and tomatoes that have been genetically modified to contain these proteins and have found them to be as nutritionally safe as their unmodified counterparts. The Department is not aware of any reports which link adverse reactions of any consumers to consumption of plants containing the Bt proteins.
