The production of GM crops has increased significantly over the last decade, and although most of this production is centered in relatively few countries, it is estimated that at the end of 2004, GM crops covered almost 4 percent of the total global arable land.

The report, titled "Modern food biotechnology, human health and development," presents the potential benefits and risks associated with GM foods.

It finds out that GM foods can increase crop yield, food quality and the diversity of foods which can be grown in a given area, and this in turn can lead to better health and nutrition, which can then help to raise health and living standards.

Introduction of New Genes to Food Chain

However, some of the genes used to manufacture GM foods have not been in the food chain before, and the introduction of new genes may cause changes in the existing genetic make-up of the crop, according to the UN health agency.

Therefore, the potential human health effects of new GM foods should always be assessed before they are grown and marketed, and long-term monitoring must be carried out to catch any possible adverse effects early, it says.

The report points out that pre-market risk assessments have been performed on all GM products where these products are marketed. In this regard, GM foods are examined more thoroughly than normal foods for their potential health and environmental impacts.

To date, the consumption of GM foods has not caused any known negative health effects, says the report.

Production of GM Crops Increasing

The WHO is working with partners such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the United Nations Environment Program to help countries examine the introduction of a given GM food from all angles.

"We can hope to gain the health and nutritional improvements of GM foods when we can help countries to research how they can control and exploit the introduction of GM products for the benefit of their own people," Jorgen Schlundt, director of WHO's Food Safety Department, told a press conference.

The first major GM food was introduced on the market in the mid-1990s. The production of GM crops has increased significantly over the last decade, and although most of this production is centered in relatively few countries, it is estimated that at the end of 2004, GM crops covered almost 4 percent of the total global arable land.