Planet Diversity World Congress on the Future of Food and Agriculture

Actualité

01.01.1970

Far North District Council (New Zealand) supports GE control investigation

GE-Free Northland has welcomed the Far North District Council?s decision to spend $15,000 on an investigation into local control of genetically modified crops and field trials. The council allocated the money in its 2008-2009 Annual Plan as a contribution towards the work of an inter-council working party that is evaluating risks posed by genetically modified organisms. Spokewoman for the group Zelka Grammer is pleased the council has committed funds to the working party, which is made up of representatives from eight Auckland and Northland councils.

01.01.1970

Ghost of Malthus walking again

Scientists across the globe are at work yet again, dealing with the Malthusian apprehensions of likely food shortages from rising population pressures on land. Thomas Robert Malthus, who expounded his theory in the 19 th century, is no more, but his warnings still ring prophetic. Around mid-20 th century, scientists had responded to the warnings by ushering in the Green Revolution that pushed yields. Today, the world, facing another food crisis, awaits another long-term solution to the problem.

01.01.1970

Japanese trading houses struggle to buy non-GE soy from the U.S.

Japanese foodmakers are struggling to secure enough ordinary soybeans as food prices soar and U.S. farmers increasingly turn to GM soybeans. The surging prices enable farmers to rake in profits even with GM soybeans, which used to be less profitable than non-GM soybeans. While non-GM soybeans take more time and manpower to grow, genetically modified soybeans are easier to grow and yield larger crops.

01.01.1970

GE mosquitoes won?t be released yet in Malaysia

Genetically modified (GM) mosquitoes will not be released into the population until all necessary studies and research are completed. Health Minister Datuk Liow Tiong Lai said the study of GM mosquitoes was still under trial as there are several stages to be completed before the release. ?The completed lab test was successful but we will not release the mosquitoes as the findings are still at research level,? he said after opening a health awareness seminar by Malacca Wanita MCA.

01.01.1970

Gaping holes in Indian regulation of GM crops

?Just rolling out the technology is not the answer as an enormous number of people are resistant to it. In the absence of a biosafety mechanism, people are justified in worrying about the impacts of genetically modified technologies.? This certainly is the case in India where protests from a host of voluntary organisations, scientists and farmers has been the norm since Bt cotton made its appearance in 2001. Three public interest litigations (PILs) have been filed since 2002, starting with that of the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology headed by environmentalist Vandana Shiva, followed in 2004 by Suman Sahai?s Gene Campaign and in 2006 by a group of food and environmental activists led by Aruna Rodrigues.

01.01.1970

Idea that GM will solve these short-term problems is ?bullshit?, UK scientist says

Denis Murphy, a leading British expert on biotech, says GM food is very beneficial ? but it won?t solve the food price crisis. In June, the UK environment minister, Phil Woolas, told the Independent that it was time for the nation to take a fresh look at the issue of genetically modified (GM) crops in the light of the surge in food prices over the past few months. Yet as Denis Murphy - a leading biotech expert - tells spiked, while a more positive attitude from government is a good thing, the idea that GM will solve these short-term problems is ?bullshit?.

01.01.1970

Australian Agriculture Burke tour to include talks on GM crops, drought, climate change

The Federal Minister for Agriculture, Tony Burke, says he will discuss the benefits of drought resistant genetically modified crops with his his state counterpart today. The West Australian Government has a moratorium on the development of genetically modified crops. Mr Burke is in Western Australia and will hold talks with the State Minister for Agriculture, Kim Chance, before touring the north west. Mr Burke says he is hopeful the WA will reconsider its position on GM crops.

01.01.1970

Australian bee keepers fear GE contamination

MACEDON beekeeper Graham Connell says genetically modified crops could bankrupt his business because there is no state registry on farms using GM. In February the State Government allowed GM varieties of canola into Victoria for the first time. But Mr Connell, with 40 bee hives, said he had no way of knowing which canola farms were GM-free.

01.01.1970

GMO wheat may help solve food crisis, Australian scientist says

Wheat genetically modified to tolerate drought would boost crop yields and may help the world resolve a food crisis, an Australian state researcher said. Australia, forecast to be the third-biggest exporter of the grain, is developing a modified wheat that could be released on the global market in five to 10 years, said German Spangenberg, executive director at Victorian AgriBiosciences Centre. Adoption of GMO wheat, not grown commercially by global producers, is inevitable for food security, he said in an interview in Tokyo.

01.01.1970

GE canola could offer even healthier oil with omega-3 fatty acid

A new generation of healthy canola oils could soon be available to consumers. Dow AgroSciences LLC and Martek Biosciences Corporation have announced they will develop and commercialize a canola seed that produces omega-3 fatty acid, DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). The two companies hope to eventually produce DHA-rich canola oil for people to eat. DHA omega-3 is a healthy long-chain fatty acid that is used by the brain and eyes. It supports brain, eye and cardiovascular health.

01.01.1970

No control of GMOs in Turkey

Genetically modified organisms, or GMOs, are not inspected and there are no laboratories in Turkey with the capacity to properly test the controversial new foods for safety, reported Zaman daily yesterday. GMOs are known to pose certain health risks, so preventive measures are taken to ensure the safety of consumers in most countries. However, in Turkey the subject is not even under discussion.

01.01.1970

Keep Poland free of GMOs!

The ?Poland Free of GMOs? is protesting against the project of amendments to the bill which bans the use of genetically modified organisms in cattle fodder. The planned changes would delay the onset of the ban by four years. Scientists, farmers, healthy food producers and non-governmental organizations, which form the ?Poland Free of GMO? coalition are against the delay of the ban. They need it to keep the market, as more and more European countries ban GMOs.

01.01.1970

Medical research is hindered by patent laws, two Nobel laureates declare

Research into new medicines is being impaired by intellectual property laws that are no longer suited to modern science, two Nobel laureates declare today in a letter to The Times. Obstructive patents on genes and medical techniques can ?impede innovation, lead to monopolisation, and unduly restrict access to the benefits of knowledge?, according to Professor Sir John Sulston and Professor Joseph Stiglitz. While the intellectual property system was developed to ensure inventors were rewarded while sharing their discoveries, it is increasingly being manipulated by industry to thwart rivals, block research or to direct it away from humanitarian goals towards those that maximise profits, the professors say.

01.01.1970

UK scientists and Monsanto reopen debate over GM food

Heading towards the market are potatoes with 33% more protein content, modified tomatoes that could be capable of protecting against cancer and peanuts without the chemicals that cause deadly nut allergies. Cassava has been packed with new genes that help the plant accumulate extra iron and zinc from the soil, and synthesise vitamins E and A. [...] ?It is time to reopen the debate over GM crops,? said Chris Leaver, professor of plant science at Oxford University and a long-term supporter of GM. ?Earth?s population will reach 9 billion by 2040. We need crops that offer better nutritional quality, can withstand drought, use fertiliser more efficiently and resist diseases and pests. GM can contribute to achieving that.?

01.01.1970

No revamp of EU rules on GMO crops: ministerial meeting

A review of the European Union?s procedures for vetting genetically modified crops does not imply the policy will undergo far-reaching change, a French environment minister said Friday. ?We are not fundamentally questioning the European system, or looking to overhaul procedure,? said Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, secretary of state for ecology, at an informal meeting of the EU?s 27 environment and energy ministers outside Paris. [...] ?There remain doubts, about an insufficient number of evaluation and long-term impacts, and a need for more transparency,? she told journalists during a break in the meetings.

01.01.1970

GE food imports and the South Korea-US Free Trade Agreement

South Korea is one country that has recently been hit hard by the US strategy of using food safety policies to assert US corporate control where it can. In March 2007, a secret bilateral deal on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) was signed on the sidelines of the final round of US?Korea FTA negotiations. This agreement considerably weakens Korea?s scope to regulate the inflow of GMOs from the United States. Not surprisingly, it was immediately welcomed by the Washington-based Biotechnology Industry Organisation, which was probably the only group that had been consulted on the deal.

01.01.1970

Multinationals vying to monopolise Pakistan?s agriculture, food

Pakistan is set to ink an agreement with the US multinational company Monsanto before the advent of the next cotton season to introduce Bioinsecticide Cotton (Bt Cotton) in the country. This move, critics fear, could ultimately pave the way for the monopolisation of the seed business in Pakistan. ?For the time being, Pakistan has signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with Monsanto but we hope to sign an agreement with the company before the beginning of the next cotton season,? Abdul Qadir Baloch, Federal Crop Commissioner, told media.

01.01.1970

GM field trials in India: leaving no room for risk assessment

The data on heat stability studies carried out on Bt protein in brinjal serve to highlight the serious lapses in the way the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) examines the biosafety data of genetically modified plants, leading to overlooking of key facts. Heat stability study is conducted to show how the Bt protein gets destroyed when it is cooked. This study is done to demonstrate the safety of genetically modified (GM) food. The summary of the study by the company states that Bt protein found before cooking is absent once it is cooked, in the case of Bt brinjal. Oops, the slip shows ? Bt protein is reported to be present even in non-GM brinjal before cooking!

01.01.1970

More biotechnology investments needed says AfricaBio (South Africa)

AfricaBio?s executive director, Jocelyn Webster [...] comments, however, that a stumbling block for the development of the biotechnology industry in South Africa is the regulatory framework, which is governed by the Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) Act. The Act ensures that when an organism is genetically modified, it undergoes a series of stringent assessment trials and tests in the environment before it is marketed. This is essential to ensure that what is put into the market is safe, and that it is not detrimental to humans, animals or to the environment. Nevertheless, Webster argues, ?This process is costly and time-consuming. If regulations are too restrictive, then innovation is stifled.?

01.01.1970

Indian scientists developing non-GE drought-resistant groundnut

Indian farmers will soon get access to a new variety of groundnut that is drought-resistant and can be cultivated even in areas where water is scarce. ?Genetic mapping has discovered certain genes in groundnut that are drought- resistant. The testing of seeds of this variety is at an advanced stage,? Rajeev K. Varshney, a senior scientist at Hyderabad?s International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), said. [...] According to ICRISAT, groundnut is the 13th most important food crop of the world, the fourth most important source of edible oil and the third most important source of vegetable protein.

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