Actualité
07.10.2008
Lord Drayson takes science brief in UK government
The UK has a new science minister - the third in two years. Lord Drayson takes up the post in the recently created Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills. It is a quick return to government for the multi-millionaire businessman who quit a position in defence in 2007 to pursue his interests in motor racing.
- British Broadcasting Corporation, UK (03.10.2008): Lord Drayson takes science brief
- Corporate Watch, UK (03.10.2008): New science minister another industry crony
- Reuters, UK (07.10.2008): Breeding seen key in greener farming revolution
- The Times, UK (02.10.2008): New BBSRC chief ’Olympic gold medallist’ of research
07.10.2008
UK consumers have unanswered questions on GM
GD has closely monitored consumer attitudes to GM food, alongside many other issues, over the last ten years. The latest research involved IGD talking to 7,000 shoppers during spring and early autumn 2008. The research shows that opinions have changed very little since the issue reached mass public attention almost a decade ago, and did not change much over the summer, despite the further increased media profile caused by rising food prices. The majority of people (54%) remain undecided, saying that they either do not know enough about GM or that they neither oppose or support GM foods
07.10.2008
US hopeful of agreement over GM crops - US Ambassador to EU
U.S. hopes to come to an agreement with the European Union over genetically modified crops, without the need to involve the World Trade Organization, the U.S. ambassador to the European Union said Tuesday. In an interview with Dow Jones, U.S. Ambassador Kristen Silverberg said the US ”continue to try to resolve” a dispute between the U.S. and the E.U. over Europe’s rules on genetically modified organisms without filing a complaint at the WTO and that there were ”ongoing conversations.”
06.10.2008
GM plants detect landmines and turn red - Field tests in South Africa
Genetically-modified plants that turn red when they grow in the presence of some explosives are being trailed for their effectiveness to detect landmines in South Africa. [...] Aresa says that if the plants make it successfully through trials and do end up being used in the field, they will be partly sterile to prevent them from breeding. The company added that planting them might involve remote controlled vehicles to clear foliage from sites that are potentially contaminated with landmines and a device called a ’hydroseeder’ that sows the seeds with a high-pressure water jet.
06.10.2008
Draft Turkish GMO law presented
A draft law on biosecurity is expected to open the door for genetic agriculture as well as trade and consumption of genetically modified organisms, or GMOs. But experts say the long-awaited draft is not in line with European Union standards and it was not discussed enough before being submitted to the Prime Ministry. [...] The draft was prepared with collaboration from universities, professional organizations and companies
06.10.2008
GMO authorisation procedure in the EU: The next reform?
The EU legal framework and the procedure for authorising genetically modified crops are being criticised and some member states have made various reform proposals. GMO Safety spoke to Maria Weimer, a PhD student at the European University Institute in Florence. Maria Weimer is a law graduate and has been researching the way the law deals with new technologies, scientific uncertainty and risks for years. She is currently completing her PhD at the European University Institute in Florence in which she is researching the application of the precautionary principle in the EU regulation of GMOs.
06.10.2008
Kenya government wants to impose GMOs ’by force’
The grand scheme to introduce genetically modified foods into Kenya seemed to shift into top gear after the Ministry of Agriculture launched a campaign last month to make the country appreciate them. First, Minister for Agriculture, William Ruto, who has on several occasions publicly expressed his support for the introduction of GM foods into the country, launched the National Biotechnology Awareness Strategy last month.
06.10.2008
Monsanto completes sale of rBST for $300M
Monsanto Co. said Thursday it has completed its $300 million sale of its Posilac cow growth hormone brand to drug maker Eli Lilly & Co. Posilac is an FDA-approved animal pharmaceutical used by U.S. dairy farmers to increase productivity. Posilac has never been a big part of Monsanto’s future growth plans, but the genetically engineered hormone has gotten significant attention because of concerns about its effect on human health.
06.10.2008
Monsanto shares tumble after Merrill says herbicide gains will slow
Monsanto Co., the world’s biggest seed producer, fell the most in eight years in New York trading after a Merrill Lynch & Co. analyst said profit gains from Roundup herbicide will slow. Monsanto dropped $16.86, or 17 percent, to $80.98 at 10:20 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading, the biggest drop since the St. Louis-based company’s initial share offering in October 2000. The shares had declined 12 percent this year before today.
- Bloomberg, USA (02.10.2008): Monsanto tumbles after Merrill says herbicide gains will slow
- Cattle Network, USA (02.10.2008): Fertilizer stock bubble pops on phosphate pricing fears
- St. Louis Post-Dispatch, USA (03.10.2008): Monsanto raises its earnings outlook, again
- Monsanto, USA (02.10.2008): Monsanto increases 2008 earnings-per-share guidance
03.10.2008
Peru’s Minister of Environment suggests to evalute GE-free options for the country
The Peruvian Minister of Environment, Antonio Brack Egg, today proposed ”very objectively evaluate” the possibility of declaring Peru as ”a country free of transgenics,” local media reported.
In a presentation to the Congress, the minister also warned about the risks to biological diversity and health of the citizens of the use of genetically modified products, reported Radio Programs of Peru (RPP).
According to the minister, the declaration of Peru as a country free of transgenics would be to ensure the conservation of native genetic resources and the competitiveness of organic agriculture and natural products Peruvians.
- Living in Peru, Peru (03.10.2008): Peru debates production of organic products or transgenic crops
- Peru, GE Free Country, Peru (02.10.2008): Civil society platform to declare Peru a GE free country
- El Comercio, Peru (17.09.2008): Minister of Environment evaluates state to Peru ’GM-free country’
- Living in Peru, Peru (15.08.2008): Environment minister: Production of transgenic food in Peru should be controlled
03.10.2008
GM licorice could help stop desertification in China
Genetic modification could be used to make a sweetener found in licorice, and help halt desertification, say scientists in Japan. Researchers there have identified an enzyme with a key role in the biological manufacture of glycyrrhizin, a sweetener- up to 300 times more potent than sugar- from licorice root, which could enable industrial production of the ”natural” sweetener by genetically modified plants or microbes. [...] Licorice production is dependent on the collection of wild Glycyrrhiza plants, especially in China, and this has caused a decrease in licorice reserves and an increase in desertification where it is harvested.
03.10.2008
Dominican Republic to launch bio-tech, bio-security research project
The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, in coordination with several local entities, will launch an 18-month project to bolster institutions for Biotechnology and Bio-security Research Capacities [...] designed for technicians, teachers and researchers who work in the detection of genetically modified organisms (GMO) and molecular markers, so the country gets the techniques to generate, validate, apply and transfer farming biotechnologies and bio-security management.
03.10.2008
Arkansas (USA) fields of glyphosate-resistant pigweed
As Roundup Ready crops have come to dominate Mid-South agriculture, so have glyphosate-resistant genes come to increasingly dominate a handful of problem Mid-South weeds. Currently, Palmer amaranth, a pigweed, tops the list of worries.
03.10.2008
Pakistan scientists develop non-GE stem rust resistant wheat
The scientists of Ayub Agricultural Research Institute, Faisalabad has successfully developed a new variety of wheat ’UG99’ which is resistant to stem rust disease of wheat. The disease poses world-wide threat to wheat productivity and productive approach of AARI scientists to solve this problem would prove highly beneficial for the country.
03.10.2008
Non-GE approaches to breed micronutrient rich crops
Bean research began in the first phase of HarvestPlus (2003-2007), with the International Center for Tropical Agriculture and its national research partners assaying more than 4,000 bean genotypes. They found varieties with more than twice the iron content of popular cultivars. [...] They have successfully developed biofortified varieties that meet 90% of the iron target and have superior agronomic traits. These varieties will be field tested next year.
02.10.2008
German diary Campina claims GM free breakthrough
Campina says it has committed to a new feed scheme for one of its leading German dairy brands as part of a wider commitment to removing genetically modified (GM) organisms from across its portfolio of products. The cooperative says that its latest commitment will ensure that only grains sourced from within Germany and the EU, which are guaranteed to be free from GM products, will be used to feed cattle supplying its Landliebe brand of milk.
02.10.2008
Brazilian commission releases transgenic crops without concern for biosafety
And why did the Ministry of Agrarian Development vote against the release of two maize varieties last week? Put briefly: because the document presented by Syngenta reported that its transgenic maize (called GA21) is stable, and that the proofs were contained in Appendix 8 of the presented documentation. But curiously, Appendix 8 had been removed from the process and not even CTNBio’s members had access to it. In addition, documentation indicating that laboratory rats fed with this maize variety had presented symptoms of intoxification were removed from the analyses.
02.10.2008
Certain crops require genetic modification to improve production in Viet Nam
Maize, soybean, cassava, and potato are crops that Vietnam needs to genetically modify to improve productivity as soon as possible, said Dr. Nguyen Quoc Binh, Deputy Director of the HCM City Biotechnology Centre, at a seminar jointly held by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the US Embassy in Vietnam on September 29. [...] Vietnam should not apply genetic modification to other crops like pepper, rice, and coffee yet because they are major export items of Vietnam.
02.10.2008
Indian GM panel wants Supreme-Court-appointed member out
The Genetic Engineering Approvals Committee, which regulates the testing and introduction of genetically-modified crops in the country, is doing its best to eject a troublesome court-appointed body from its midst. [...] Bhargava had pointed out lapses in its supervision of the regulatory process, questioned some of its claims on the safety of GM crops and spoken out in the media. In response, the GEAC, in its meetings on July 9 and August 13, said (in minutes that are on its website) ”that Dr Bhargava was responsible for the malicious and distorted views on the regulatory process being reported in the newspapers periodically”. Bhargava was not present on either occasion, nor was the matter listed on the agenda.
02.10.2008
Bayer subsidiary eyes India launch pad for hybrid seeds
German biotechnology and agrochemical company Bayer CropScience AG, a subsidiary of drug maker Bayer AG, intends to work directly with Indian farmers to research, innovate and introduce new varieties of hybrid seeds in the local market. The firm’s Indian arm, Bayer CropScience Ltd, will facilitate retailers to buy produce from more than 1,000 farmers enrolled with its project called food-chain partnership. [...] In return, the company will use these farms for on-field research and development, said Birgitt Walz-Tylla, global head of Bayer CropScience’s food chain management.
