Food Evolution film screenings in Europe: confronting fake news

Scientists: Substantial GHG increase if GMOs banned

In a new study, scientists from Purdue University predict a substantial increase in GHG emissions if GMO technology is banned globally. They estimated welfare losses would total up to $9.75 billion. 

Uganda puts biotech regulation in place

The process of introducing a law to regulate modern biotechnology started in 2008. With up to 15 biotechnology products under different stages of trial, the passage of the bill is likely to help Uganda claim its place in Africa as one of the countries at the forefront of agricultural research, according to Ugandan newspaper Sunrise. Read more on ISAAA and AATF. 

Think Tank, Scientists, ask US to reverse policy against GM Seeds

A world leading science and technology think tank, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), along with a group of independent scientists, called on US Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke to reverse a policy that phased out the use of GM seeds on designated wildlife refuge lands. The group writes, “The prohibition of ‘genetically modified’ crops is a wrong-headed and anti-environmental policy, and the conceit that it is being advanced out of respect for a ‘land ethic’ is indefensible.

Polish GM feed ban may be unrealistic and illegal

The Polish Ministry of Agriculture is working on a draft law that would implement a ban on GM feed imports in Poland. The objective is to replace imported GM soy (aproximately 2,5 million tonnes annually) with domestic high protein crops. Journalists have questioned the operability of such a ban especially in the short term, suggesting that there is a very high possibility that ban will be postponed for a third time. The draft law, which would likely be challenged in EU courts if ever implemented, was commented on in TVP INFO , Radio Maryja  and Nasz Dziennik (all in Polish). See also EuropaBio factsheet ʺGMO import bans would be both unnecessarily costly and pointless.”

Short Trade & Approvals News

• Canada: Time to bid adieu to GMO regulations – Western Producer
• Nigeria Prepares For Commercialization of BT Cowpea, Cotton - Nigerian Leadership
• Africa’s Biotech Integration 20 years Overdue, Says Prime Minister of Uganda – AATF news
    

Commission conference highlights need for plant innovation

The conference on Modern Biotechnologies in Agriculture, which took place in Brussels on 28 September, revolved around whether new methods of plant breeding should fall under the EU’s politicised GMO approval process. The most prominent speakers emphasized the importance of science and innovation. Estonian Agriculture Minister Tamm asked: “Will banning a technology just mean that breeders leave Europe?”. Agriculture Commissioner Hogan warned not to “deprive the farmers from modern techniques”. "New breeding techniques are much more precise than conventional techniques," confirmed Prof. Bujnicki, who led the work on the related publication of the Commission's Scientific Advice Mechanism. He added: “We are all mutants. Your DNA will probably be different at the end if this conference”. Arjen van Tunen (CEO of Keygene and EuropaBio board member) requested legal clarity and illustrated the potential of plant breeding with a bicycle tyre made with dandelions. Food Safety Commissioner Andriukaitis challenged the opponents of innovation: “Green is not the monopoly of Greenpeace”. The conference can be viewed on-line. 

Reactions: don’t let the EU become a museum!

The Commission conference triggered strong reactions from farmers, scientists and media. Some farmers fear the European Court of Justice will make a "political decision" on the subject, which would hinder innovation. In an editorial in "L'Informatore Agrario", the journal’s Director, Antonio Boschetti, argues that misleading statements about agricultural technology, based on partial and instrumentalised information, have become the norm in recent years. The growing anti-scientific climate that characterises the discussion surrounding agriculture requires operators, now more than ever before, to support responsible stewardship based on a solid scientific approach. Read more here (in Italian). Hannes Kollist, Professor of Molecular Plant Biology at the University of Tartu (Estonia), argued in an opinion piece that "New gene editing technologies are already revolutionising every field in life sciences, from plant breeding to human medicine".  The question remains: will Europe be part of the next green revolution or become a "Museum of Agriculture" instead?” His article also featured in Genetic Literacy Project and in Estonian media.

Italian agriculture needs genetic innovation

A conference organised on 8 November at the Italian Chamber of Deputies by Italian farmers and the Eyu Foundation analysed the effects of genomic editing technologies on some Italian agricultural crops.  The rapporteurs concluded that is critical to ensure access to new technologies like gene editing in Europe and Italy to respond to our agricultural challenges. This is essential not only for environmental and technical reasons, but also to defend EU competitiveness. Genome editing is the ideal tool, as the method allows breeders to select plant improvement features without introducing foreign traits and maintaining the typical characteristics of the original varieties. Sustainable agriculture requires more and better production, consuming less soil, water, and other inputs. Current legislation should not represent an obstacle to the adoption of new technologies. More information here. 

World’s largest crop now more nutritious

Corn, the world's largest commodity crop, is now more nutritious thanks to a recent discovery that could benefit millions of people in developing countries. By inserting an E.coli bacterial gene in corn, scientists were able to boost a key amino acid called methionine found in meat, therefore reducing animal feed and food production costs.  

French biotech council opines about innovative breeding methods

On 2 November, the French High Council for Biotechnology (HCB) published an opinion on the use of new plant breeding methods. For its scientific committee, "the risks are to be assessed on a case-by-case basis, depending on the technique, but also and especially the character conferred on the plant." For its economic, ethical and social committee (CEES), this evaluation must be conducted "according to the risks involved, as part of a system that is neither too cumbersome nor too concise in view of the security imperatives and the contribution of varieties to sustainable, diversified and innovative agriculture." No consensus has been reached on the regulatory aspects, as well as labelling, traceability or IP, and many resignations have taken place in the CEES over the last few months. 

Food challenges require biotech says French association

The French Green Biotechnology Association (AFBV) organised its 7th symposium "Do plant biotechnologies meet the expectations of the agricultural and agri-food sectors?”, on 17 October in Paris, attended by a hundred researchers and members of the agri-food sector. Presentations and subscription options to an informative newsletter on plant breeding are available on the AFBV website. In a press release addressed to the government in the framework of the General State of Food, the AFBV concludes that "the challenges are so many and complex ... that we must quickly release our public and private research through the use of plant biotechnology." 

Let innovation happen in Europe

According to EuropaBio’s Violeta Georgieva, we should make sure we foster innovation and keep our bright scientists in Europe. Biotechnology is saving plants from pests through developing desirable characteristics, but the process for developing a new characteristic is lengthy and requires much time and resources. In this video, Violeta explains the safety assessment of GM crops, and notes that we should trust the science. Find out more about the approval process and GMO risk assessment timelines in our factsheets. 

Regulation impacts aginnovation

Short Innovation & IP News

• Ugandans to Eat GMO Potatoes In 2020 - The Observer
• UK Site Will Produce Billions of anti-disease GM Mosquitoes to fight disease - Healio
• Kenya to Start National Performance Trials for Bt Cotton - ISAAA
• De Castro MEP: New plant breeding techniques are nothing like ‘Frankenstein’ GMOs - Euractiv

GM court ruling continues to provoke reactions

The EU's Court of Justice (CJEU) delivered a judgment on 13 September, which notes that an Italian law that had been used to deny an Italian farmer the right to grow GM maize had no legal basis at the time for preventing such cultivation. "Do we really wish to have a science-based society or should we let ourselves be governed by prejudices and misconceptions?" ask Roberto Defez and Dennis Eriksson in their opinion piece in Euractiv. “An EU court judgment has restated that fears are unfounded, but will Europe take the opportunity to become a science-based society”? They also point out the fact that the EU legislation has moved even further away from the science. “Whereas scientific evidence was necessary before to implement a national temporary prohibition, under the safeguard clause, against a GM event authorised for cultivation, it is now enough to claim grounds related to “town and country planning”, “land use”, “public policy” or any other vague argument to deny farmers the right to cultivate what they want and what they need.” See also a separate article by environmentalist Mark Lynas about the farmer who brought the case against the Italian state.

GM to save Florida’s oranges

GM technology could once again save a local fruit industry from being wiped out by disease, reports The Wall Street Journal. While public GM innovation saved the Hawaiian papaya industry, a medium sized company has been working on a GM solution to save Florida’s citrus industry. Florida is synonymous with oranges. They’re on the state license plate. A disease called “citrus greening” is pushing Florida’s orange juice industry toward the brink of collapse. The technology Southern Gardens is using, developed by Texas A&M University, inserts a gene that is a part of the immune system of spinach into the genetic structure of an orange.

Dame Anne Glover criticises SNP approach to GM crops 

Former Chief Scientific Adviser to the European Commission and the Scottish Government Dame Anne Glover has criticised the Scottish Government for ‘failing to inform the public about the potential benefits of GM Crops.’ Glover said that public opinion is still largely negative to GM crops because ‘governments are reluctant to spell out the benefits’. Glover said, ‘I’m not promoting GM crops, all I’m saying is the technology is safe, just as safe as, if not safer, than all the other ways that we produce new crop varieties’. A spokesperson from the Scottish Government responded by saying they value the views of the scientific community but also have to consider ‘other social, environmental and economic factors’.

Environment can be more harmful for plant safety than genetic engineering

A research team led by Portuguese scientist of the National Health Institute Ricardo Jorge (INSA) and the Institute of Chemical and Biological Technology (ITQB NOVA) shows that environmental stress is a major cause of alterations in plants’ genomes in both GM and non-GM plants. The research raises questions about what information is really relevant and what information is clearly excessive when designing risk assessment for GMOs, considering that environment-induced alterations may have more relevance for safety than changes promoted by genetic engineering. The research was published in the Scientific Reports journal, and the news was also covered by INSA, ITQB NOVA, and Visão Magazine. 

GM potato trial shows signs of blight resistance 

A genetically improved potato designed to have resistance to late blight has successfully come through the first year of field trials at the Sainsbury Laboratory in England. Alongside resistance to blight, next year’s field trials of the modified potatoes will also carry traits to improve tuber quality. Read more.

Short Science & Safety News 

• Scientific Consensus on GM safety and on Climate change – Skeptical Raptor
• Green technology: Disease-resistant GMO tomato that could eliminate need for copper pesticides, double yields–blocked by public fears - Genetic Literacy Project
• Uganda’s President urges Africans and Christian leaders to embrace science -  Alliance for Science
• Golden Rice – A Miracle Tarnished By Irresponsible Activism - The Hill 
• Scientists use genetics to make corn more nutritious - helping millions of the world's poorest people – Internatl. Business Times
• Genetically Boosting the Nutritional Value of Corn Could Benefit Millions – Rutgers University
• ‘GMO’ petunias: Ridiculousness exposed and explained - Giovanni Tagliabue on Genetic Literacy Project
• Self-interest, the denial of climate change, and resistance to ag biotechnology – Berkeley Blog

A-maize-ing grain in Spain!  

EuropaBio’s Pedro Narro Sanchez shares the success story of GM maize cultivation in Spain in this video. Despite having the biggest area of organic farmland in the EU, Spain is also a big producer of GM maize, showing that co-existence is possible. GM maize has long been identified in Spain as an important solution to managing farms more sustainably and safely, because it provides low levels of mycotoxins, optimises use of inputs, and allows for the efficient management of energy, water and soil.

Protecting resources for future generations  

Nancy Kavazanijan, a farmer from Wisconsin, who represents soybean farmers in the United States, and also grows maize, grows both GM and non-GM seed. She regards GM seed as an important tool for growing healthy crops and maintaining the health of the soil. GM technology is making her more economically efficient and providing environmental benefits. See her interview here.

Scientists are close to creating a GMO wheat without gluten

Researchers in Spain are making progress towards wheat-based, gluten-free bread, and small trials of GM wheat are already being carried out in Mexico and Spain. As reported in New Scientist and Quartz, the advances in research are good news for people with celiac disease, and the gluten-free market has been growing in recent years. 

German social democrats draft law to ban GM cultivation 

The SPD faction of the German Bundestag has introduced a draft law on genetic engineering in the German Bundestag, which is intended to prohibit the commercial cultivation of GM plants throughout Germany (through implementing the opt-out directive (EU) No. 2015/412 into German law). The SPD is campaigning for a decision of conscience on the part of parliamentarians. Read more here: The SPD's proposal, statement of the SPD, article in the Süddeutsche Zeitung.

Food-waste reducing apples land in U.S. stores

Okanagan Specialty Fruits, a small agricultural biotech company based in Canada, is gearing up for the first commercial crop of its non-browning apples this autumn. Marketed under the Arctic Apples brand, the genetically modified fruit, which is engineered to resist browning when sliced, and is therefore expected to help reduce food waste, will be available in US supermarkets from around October. Golden, Granny and Fuji are hitting the shelves, and Gala is next in line. The company stated that it has “not started the process for gaining approval” in Europe. Read the full story in Fruitnet.

Short Cultivation & Benefits News 

• Study: Food Security Needs More from GM Crops - ISAAA
• Despite Progress, Ag Productivity Growth Still Lags Behind Global Needs - Agri-Pulse  
• GM could fight deadly mycotoxins - if not blocked by activists – Generic Literacy Project
• There's something special about this rice and it could be the answer to malnutrition - WEF 

Record-breaking Biotech Week 

During the fifth edition of European Biotech Week in the last week of September, local groups and communities across Europe learned more about biotechnology than ever before. We would like to congratulate and wholeheartedly thank all of them for ensuring that this edition of Biotech Week became the most successful one! Not only was the week at the heart of the European Parliament in Brussels this year with a wonderful exhibition about biotech, but it also reached a record-breaking number of 19 European countries with 151 events and activities. Read all about it here, and see the interview with EuropaBio’s John Brennan.

GMO guide continues European adventure

Brussels Biotech Week events bring needed attention to GMOs

“Yes to GMOs! For us and the environment” available on-line

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