現代生物技術應用于食品產業，對人類的健康問題提出了新的機遇和挑戰。對于公眾健康部分的潛在益處包括改變食物營養成分、減少潛在過敏物質和提高糧食生產系統的效率。另一方面，通過基因改造手段生產消費性糧食，這種生產方式對人類健康的潛在作用必須嚴格測試。如果現代生物技術能夠真正成為提高我們生產糧食的手段，那它必須通過徹底的評估。原先的觀念認為用沒有此方面認知能力的消費者角度來看待這一領域所有相關問題，這種趨勢是膚淺的。而消費者應該被關注并告知。

　　未來的這一領域的發展將使WHO在四個主要方面展開工作：

　　A。在健全科學基礎上建立科學的安全評估框架

　　從現代生物技術中制造出的食物，需要促進對其健全安全與風險評估框架的建立。除了將其列入生物技術衍生食物法典(Codex Intergovernmental Task Force on Foods Derived from Biotechnology)外，WHO將會在健全科學基礎上提出解決新問題的原則和指導方針。

　　B 。對于現代生物技術制造的食物，制定營養方面安全評估的標準方法

　　提高對現代生物技術制造的新食物進行營養評估是需要的，事實上是新型食物的特殊營養性狀。我們需要有一個更加注重營養評估新的現代生物科技食品。其實這些想法已經是糧農組織/世界衛生組織專家磋商對于現代生物技術食物的一部分，但增強其影響是必要的。這種影響應該作用于其他政府論壇，如新型食物的經合組織。

　　C 。將風險評估與風險管理和交流連接起來

　　在國內與國際上，將風險評估支出與風險管理與交流的作用連接起來，這一迫切需求是有效的機制和方法。對于正在規劃階段的風險交流作用，消費者和其他有關各方的新思維應該進一步加強。這一領域已經取得的經驗也應該用于食品安全的其他發面。

　　D、對健康和發展政策更廣泛的角度

　　通過現代生物技術開發的新食品并不總是被認為是符合 “公共利益”。這些新產品有潛在健康或產品效益風險點，而發展中國家的產品可以改變這一觀點。這些產品需要一個更全面的評估，找到這些產品所有方面的變化(健康效益，營養，安全，發展和社會經濟系統等)。在這項工作的準備過程中，WHO需要加強和其他伙伴之間的合作。這些合作不僅僅是相關領域的技術問題，如生產效率和安全評估方面；也需要認識到如何使現代生物技術生產食物用于滿足發展中國家的需要。

　　附英文原文：

　　General information about biotechnology (GM foods)

　　The application of modern biotechnology to food production presents new opportunities and challenges for human health. The potential benefits to the public health sector include altering the nutrient content of foods， decreasing their allergenic potential， and improving the efficiency of food production systems. On the other hand， the potential effects on human health of the consumption of food produced through genetic modification must be carefully examined. Modern biotechnology must be thoroughly evaluated if it is to bring about a true improvement in our way of producing food .The tendency to explain all concerns in this area as a problem of perceptions originating in the consumers incapacity to understand is simplistic. In stead the consumers right to be concerned as well as to be informed should be acknowledged。

　　The future developments in this area will focus WHO work in four major areas:

　　A. Establishing scientific safety assessment frameworks based on sound science

　　There is a need to facilitate the establishment of sound safety and risk assessment frameworks for foods derived from modern biotechnology. In addition to providing input to the Codex Intergovernmental Task Force on Foods Derived from Biotechnology， WHO will develop the principles and guidelines for addressing emerging issues based on sound science。

　　B. Standardizing methods for nutritional aspects in safety assessments of food derived from modern biotechnology。

　　There is a need for an increased focus on nutritional assessments of new foods derived from modern biotechnology and in fact from novel foods in general with specific nutritional traits. These types of considerations are already part of the FAO/WHO Expert Consultations on food derived from modern biotechnology， but a strengthened effort is needed. This effort should be coordinated with efforts in other intergovernmental fora， such as the OECD Task Force on Novel Foods。

　　C. Linking risk assessments to risk management and communication。

　　Effective mechanisms and approaches are urgently needed both at national and at international level to bridge the outcomes of risk assessments into risk management and risk communication efforts. New thinking towards involving consumers and other interested parties already at the planning stages of risk communication efforts need to be developed. And the experience gained in this area could be used in other aspects of food safety。

　　D. The broader perspective of health and development policy

　　The development of new foods through modern biotechnology has not always been perceived to be guided by a perspective of "public good". New products with potential health or production benefits in developing countries could change this. Such products will need a more holistic assessment， looking into all aspects of such production changes (health benefit， nutrition， safety， development and socioeconomical issues， etc). In preparation of this work there is a need for WHO to strengthen its collaboration with intersectoral partners. Such efforts would entail technical issues related to such areas as production efficiency and safety assessments but also more general issues of how foods derived from modern biotechnology could be made useful in addressing the needs of developing countries。