Gov’t, Private Sectors Push for Stronger Biosafety in Philippine Biotech Research
LOS BAÑOS, LAGUNA (17 July 2025)– Protecting public safety and environmental health remains a top priority as biosafety leaders gathered at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) to strengthen their shared responsibility in managing research, particularly those involving genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and other products of modern biotechnology.
LOS BAÑOS, LAGUNA (17 July 2025)– Protecting public safety and environmental health remains a top priority as biosafety leaders gathered at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) to strengthen their shared responsibility in managing research, particularly those involving genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and other products of modern biotechnology.
The Department of Science and Technology-Biosafety Committee, in partnership with IRRI, conducted an Institutional Biosafety Commitee Orientation and Refresher Seminar to strengthen biosafety practices for GMO research in the Philippines. The event brought together members of Institutional Biosafety Committees (IBCs) from both the public and private sectors across Luzon to promote the safe, ethical, and compliant use of modern biotechnology in contained use and confined test experiments.
“You are our frontliners in ensuring that research involving regulated materials remains safe, ethical, and compliant with national and institutional guidelines,” said Dr. Reynaldo V. Ebora, Chair, DOST-BC and Executive Director of the DOST-Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCAARRD), in a video message.
Dr. Junel Soriano, Deputy Director General - Philippines Representative, echoed this, saying, “Today, we reaffirm our dedication to stewardship and regulatory excellence in all studies involving regulated materials. We are proud to showcase our best practices, which will be highlighted during the tour of our transgenic facilities”
IRRI has a long-standing relationship with DOST-BC and the overarching National Committee on Biosafety of the Philippines (NCBP), dating back to the establishment of the NCBP in 1990.