GENET-news

13.11.2008

GMOs: Kenya in dilemma

Kenya is faced with a dilemma on whether or not it should enact the Biosafety Bill to regulate activities of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs). [...] Although the authority will also be charged with the responsibility of administering the law and promote public awareness and education regarding GM activities, it fails to recognise public participation as a basic right. This shortcoming has prompted a group of civil society to vehemently oppose the Bill on grounds that all the stakeholders were not consulted during the drafting stage.

13.11.2008

BASF StrigAway Maize - Yet another quick fix for Africa’s farmers?

BASF has joined forces with two high-profile non-profit organisations, CIMMYT and AATF, to bring its technology to maize farmers in East Africa. The promise is that Clearfield maize seeds will rescue African farmers from the parasitic tentacles of the Striga plant, a weed that destroys huge tracts of Africa’s maize production. If things move according to plan, the seeds, which are called StrigAway or Ua Kayongo (Swahili for ”Striga killer”), will be commercialised in Kenya before the end of 2006.

13.11.2008

After 10 years Insect Resistant Maize for Africa project, non-GE varieties are launched

At a recent workshop to review progress so far achieved on the Insect Resistant Maize for Africa (IRMA) project, Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) which partners up with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) announced that although their research has taken almost ten years for Bt maize, it has instead come up with conventional maize varieties that is resistant to rampant field pests like stem borers that feed from the plant leaves and storage pests like larger grain borers that can clear stored seeds in a short period.

13.11.2008

Non-GE varieties of quality protein maize available for African farmers

Africa’s endemic hunger and malnutrition that continues to blight a huge proportion of the population has found a respite, with the introduction of quality protein maize varieties for small holder farmers. The new varieties (it is not just one, there are several) have significantly boosted yields as well as nutrition and incomes to small scale farmers. According to documented research from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT), quality protein maize (QPM) contains enhanced levels of essential amino acids, lysine and trytophan, along with other features that make more of its protein useful to humans and farm animals.

13.11.2008

Aresa (Denmark) announces failure of GE landmine detection technology

As was expected the tests in Serbia did not produce a positive result (none of the plants changed colours to red when growing in proximity to TNT-infected soil) and as the company explained at its general meeting, further development of the plant is assessed to last 2-3 years. aresa is now left with patented technologies that have not been validated. This makes the value of the patents highly uncertain, and the technology represents value only if the biotech activities continue in some form. aresa has booked goodwill in relation to the patents of DKK 13,4m, which is now at risk of being written down to DKK 0.

13.11.2008

Modified genes spread to local maize in Mexico

Transgenes from genetically modified (GM) maize (corn) crops have been found in traditional ’landrace’ maize in the Mexican heartland, a study says. The work largely confirms a similar, controversial result published in Nature in 2001 and may reignite the debate in Mexico over GM crops. The paper reports finding transgenes in three of the 23 locations that were sampled in 2001, and again in two of those locations using samples taken in 2004. Written by a team led by Elena Álvarez-Buylla of the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) in Mexico City, the study will be published in the journal Molecular Ecology.

12.11.2008

Critical analysis of EFSA’s opinion on MON863 hybrids

Decreased organ weight were observed in all studies including heart, kidney, thyroid/parathyroid, epididymes and other (not specified) organs. Most of these differences are described as ”statistically significant different”. Changes in blood included lower numbers of red blood cells, increased corpuscular hemoglobin for one hybrid and a decrease in another, increased blood urea nitrogen, changes in basophile counts, and an increased neutrophil count. Other changes included higher feed consumptions of animals: Female rats fed with a small amounts of MON863xMON810 and rats fed high amounts of MON863xNK603 consumed more feed then the control groups.

12.11.2008

Monsanto’s statement on safety allegations related to transgenic maize NK603 X MON 810

the scientific community refrains from making any substantive conclusions based on a preliminary report. The gold standard for communication of scientific results is a thorough peer review by qualified experts. The Greenpeace press statement is inconsistent with over a decade of reputable, peer-reviewed, scientific studies, including multi-generational studies, which demonstrate and confirm the safety of GM crops. ”These products have been proven to be safe. This report does not provide any basis to conclude otherwise,” said Jerry Hjelle, Ph.D., Vice President of Monsanto’s regulatory group.

12.11.2008

My two-day field trip with Germany’s BASF Plant Science

Of course, if you’re to believe BASF, there’s nothing at all to fear from genetic modification - or genetic ”optimization,” as it was repeatedly referred to there. A presentation by Graham Brookes, director of the England-based PG Economics Limited, showed hard evidence of the overwhelmingly positive economic and environmental impacts of the crops. Mind you, this is a man whose company gets a paycheck from such pro-GM trade associations as CropLife International and Green Biotech Europe, and who summed up his view of the Indian environmental activist Vandana Shiva with the couplet ”bloody idiot.”

12.11.2008

Monsanto Company to invest in technologies for sugarcane with acquisitions of CanaVialis and Alellyx

In the face of long-term changes driving greater global demand for food and biofuel sources, Monsanto Company is investing in a new large-acre row crop, sugarcane, to diversify its existing core crop portfolio and to leverage its experience in bringing innovations to the agricultural marketplace through breeding and biotechnology. Monsanto announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Aly Participacoes Ltda., which operates the sugarcane breeding and technology companies, CanaVialis S.A. and Alellyx S.A., both of which are based in Brazil.

12.11.2008

U.S. wheat industry works on pro-GE-wheat campaign

Vic Knauf believes there is great potential in solving some of the agronomic problems that plague wheat producers.
Knauf is the chief scientific officer at Arcadia Biosciences, Davis, California. The company develops plants that improve the environment and are beneficial to human health. And Arcadia is developing Nitrogen Use Efficiency technology in wheat.

12.11.2008

Syngenta buys Argentine seeds company SPS

The world’s largest agrochemicals company Syngenta AG said on Monday it has bought SPS Argentina, a company specialised in development, production and marketing of soybean, corn and sunflower. ”The transaction will give Syngenta a significantly increased presence in the important soybean market in Argentina, complementing its existing strong positions in corn and sunflower,” the company said in a statement.

11.11.2008

Austrian study shows fertility problems in mice fed with Monsanto’s NK603xMON810 Bt maize

A study published today by the Austrian government identified serious health threats of genetically engineered (GE) crops. In one of the very few long-term feeding studies ever conducted with GE crops, the fertility of mice fed with GE maize was found to be severely impaired, with fewer offspring being produced than by mice fed on natural crops. Considering the severity of the potential threat to human health and reproduction, Greenpeace is demanding a recall of all GE food and crops from the market, worldwide.

11.11.2008

Researchers bring non-GE drought-tolerant, disease-resistant cassava to African farmers

Cassava farmers in the semi-arid zones of sub-Saharan Africa are now enjoying 6-10 times better yields thanks to a new variety developed by IITA that is well-adapted to the dry or drought-prone conditions of the region. Dubbed TMS92/0067, the variety, with farmer management, produces an average of 30 to 50 tonnes of cassava per hectare as opposed to the 5 tonnes per hectare from local varieties commonly used by farmers in these areas.

11.11.2008

U.S. researchers breed non-GE drought-tolerant soybeans with Asian landraces

Carter and his team have been transferring a slow-wilting characteristic from Asian landraces into U.S.-adapted varieties. Once the team gets the slow-wilting trait into a high-yielding line, they share the new line with private seed companies and public soybean breeders. ”Industry breeders use the USDA drought-tolerant lines as valuable breeding stock to develop high-yielding varieties adapted to the stressful U.S. summers,” says Carter.

In a Nebraska field, Team Drought collaborator Jim Specht screens soybean plants for desirable slow-wilting traits.

11.11.2008

Newspaper brings to light abuses against poor farmers in Argentina

According to official statistics, between 2002 and 2006, more than 500,000 hectares were deforested to make way for genetically modified soybeans, Argentina’s main export crop. The advance of monoculture, besides destroying the area’s natural biodiversity, is also undermining the very survival of campesinos who have lived and farmed in the region for generations.

11.11.2008

Report cannot disprove links between Bt cotton and farmer suicides in India

The authors admit in the actual paper that the data is simply not available that would allow specific conclusions as to the numbers of Bt cotton farmers who have committed suicide: ”...none of the reported data sources on farmer suicide provide information about the concerned farmers’ characteristics.” [...] there’s nothing in this report to contradict the award-winning Indian development journalist P Sainath [...] calling the massive hyping of Bt cotton to poor debt-burdened dryland farmers as, ”murderous... stupid... killing”.

11.11.2008

Indian campaign against GM crops gaining momentum

The distinction between a vegetarian and a non-vegetarian might soon get blurred with the introduction of genetically modified crops. Now, imagine tomatoes, which are genetically modified with the gene of a pig. This has sparked a global campaign against genetically modified (GM) foods. Uttar Pradesh, too, has been engulfed in the campaign — ”I am no lab rat”.

11.11.2008

Austrian study shows fertility problems in mice fed with Monsanto’s NK603xMON810 Bt maize

The fertility of mice which have been fed with genetically modified maize NK603xMON810 of the U.S. agro-multi Monsanto is impaired significantly. This is the results of a long-term study published by the Austrian Ministry of Health in Vienna today. In contrast to mice fed with conventional maize, the treated animals gave birth to less and weaker offspring. Greenpeace calls for an immediate moratorium on genetically modified crops in the EU.

10.11.2008

Engineering a false hope

The recent spike in food prices, as well as concerns about what the future may hold, are weighing on the minds of people across the globe. The biotech industry is exploiting such worries and claiming, contrary to evidence, that genetically engineered (GE) crops must be accepted to help the world feed itself. The industry hopes to use these scare tactics to expand into the many countries, especially in Europe and the East, that have wisely rejected GE foods because their human health and environmental safety have not yet been assessed.

10.11.2008

Clinton at UN: food, energy, financial woes linked

”Food is not a commodity like others,” said Clinton, who heads an international non-governmental organization bearing his name. ”We should go back to a policy of maximum agricultural self-sufficiency,” Clinton said. While there would always be a global market for crops like rice, wheat and corn, he added, ”it is crazy for us to think we can develop a lot of these countries where I work without increasing their capacity to feed themselves and treating food like it was a color television set.”

10.11.2008

Indian Cotton farmers adopt Bollgard II in 4,5 mill acres

Due to improved yield and better control of pest-resistance, adoption of Bollgard II version of GM cotton has increased four-fold since its commercial launch in 2006 and area under cultivation has risen to 45 lakh [4,5 mill ac; 1,8 mill ha]. Of 172 lakh acres of total Bt cotton, farmers cultivated Bollgard II in 45.1 lakh acres and Bollgard in 127.2 lakh acres during kharif 2007-08 season, said Mahyco Monsanto Biotech, a 50:50 joint venture between Maharashtra-based seed firm Mahyco and global seed giant Monsanto.

10.11.2008

First GM canola crop delivered to silo in New South Wales (Australia)

THE first genetically-modified canola crop has been delivered into a silo in NSW, Monsanto Australia announced. Parkes farmer Graham Barron, who delivered his Roundup Ready canola crop to a silo at Grenfell this week, said in a statement issued by Monsanto that he was impressed by the results and with the supply chain processes.

10.11.2008

Australian farmers could face prosecution over GM canola

A growing number of Australian farmers who have signed on to grow genetically modified canola have begun to express growing concerns as to the ”onerous” obligations they are exposing themselves to. [...] The contract, as exposed in the Canberra Times recently, signifies that if the land is sold, contractual obligations are passed on to the new owner for up to two years after they have signed on the dotted line. The onerous liability in this situation means that the new owner could be liable for any breaches of the contract incurred by the previous owner.

10.11.2008

IRRI chief volunteers to be human guinea pig for GM rice

International Rice Research Institute chief Dr. Robert Zeigler has said he will be the first to eat genetically modified (GM) ”golden” rice when the IRRI introduces it in the Philippines in 2012 to show Filipinos it is both safe for human consumption and nutritious. IRRI scientists over the past 10 years have been investigating and field testing the safety of this GM rice invented by a Swiss plant biologist which contains beta-carotene. It is called ”golden” because the inserted beta-carotene turns the rice grains a golden yellow color. In a typical serving, golden rice can supply 10 percent of a person’s daily requirement of Vitamin A.

06.11.2008

Germany names little-known MP as farm minister

Ilse Aigner, a little-known backbench member of parliament, was officially named as Germany’s new Agriculture and Consumer Protection Minister on Friday. [...] She is an engineer and before entering parliament was involved in development of the Eurocopter helicopter project. [...] The opposition Green Party had claimed she supports an expansion of farming of genetically-modified organisms. Aigner said on television only that she would continue Seehofer’s current GMO policy.

06.11.2008

GE salmon hotly debated in the USA

Genetically engineered food: It’s either a great scientific leap forward, or a potentially dangerous experiment. And for the first time, the door is open to the possibility of genetically engineered meat and fish on grocery shelves. The idea is hotly debated. One of the first companies trying to bring this new food to the market is headquartered in Massachusetts. Aqua Bounty Technologies, based in Waltham, has created genetically engineered salmon.

06.11.2008

Argentine cow clones may help boost milk output

Argentine scientists have found a way to make cows produce more milk by injecting them with a bovine growth hormone produced by cloned and genetically modified dairy cows. Synthetic bovine somatotropin, which is also called rbST, is already injected into cows to boost milk production, but Argentine researchers say their method is cheaper and produces a natural bovine hormone.

06.11.2008

GE Free New Zealand brings GE animal trials to High Court

GE Free New Zealand is mounting a legal challenge to plans by AgResearch to extend transgenic animal research. The Crown Research Institute has applied to the Environmental Risk Management Authority to continue research into cows that have been genetically modified to include human proteins in their milk. [...] GE Free claims the applications lodged with ERMA are too general and do not give information on the risks, costs and benefits of the proposal.

06.11.2008

CIMMYT and KARI develop on-GE stem borer and drought-resistant maize for Kenyan farmers

Scientists from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CYMMYT) and the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute have said that they have developed a new maize variety which has resistance to pests and diseases. The new maize variety they said is not genetically modified but a hybrid seed which will be made readily available to farmers in six months time.

06.11.2008

Global partnership brings non-GE striga-resistant maize Kenyan markets

Work by a multilateral partnership has resulted in a promising Striga control measure that has recently started moving from the laboratory to farmers’ fields. The practice is based on a type of maize with a natural mutation that allows it to resist the chemical imidazolinone—active ingredient in many herbicides. Seeds of this imidazolinone-resistant maize are coated with a herbicide and, when sown, the coated seed kills sprouting Striga, allowing the crop to flourish.

05.11.2008

Soya - Paraguay’s painful harvest

The team discovers that the protest is part of a nationwide peasant uprising, pitting ordinary Paraguayans against a wave of soya farmers - mainly Brazilian - who they claim are colonising their country, pushing people aside and contributing to the almost total deforestation of the eastern provinces. Nearby, the team meets Pedro Silva, a seventy-one year old peasant who was shot five times by unknown assailants after he refused to sell up his smallholding to a soya farmer. Two Brazilians are currently awaiting trial for attempted murder.

05.11.2008

Monsanto invests in Brazilian sugarcane biofuels development

Monsanto is set to acquire Aly Participacoes Ltda., which operates the Brazilian sugarcane breeding and technology companies, CanaVialis S.A. and Alellyx S.A., it was announced today (3rd November). The deal, worth a reported $290 million, sees the purchase of the company from Votorantim Novos Negocios Ltda and will be completed as soon as practical. Monsanto explained that because the acquisition represents a long-term investment in research and development and breeding, it does not expect the acquisition to contribute to earnings until the middle of the next decade. The company additionally expects a purchase-accounting adjustment for in-process R&D.

05.11.2008

First foreign-funded crop research center opens in China

Swiss biotech company Syngenta has opened the first foreign-funded crop research organization in China. The Syngenta Biotechnology (China) Co Ltd., in the Zhongguancun Life Science Park, would focus on improving yields and drought resistance of crops like corn and soy, as well as conversion to biofuels. ”China is increasingly recognized for the scale and caliber of its biotech expertise in agriculture,” said Wang Xun, president of Syngenta Biotechnology China.

05.11.2008

Ecological Society of the Philippines urges government to guard against entry of GMO products

The Ecological Society of the Philippines is urging the government to initiate testing procedures to determine whether any of the crops and consumer goods imported from abroad and sold in the market today contain so-called genetically modified organisms. ”This is a serious problem. Genetically modified crops are not safe beyond reasonable doubt. It has been banned in other countries, especially in Europe, and the government should protect us from the influx of imported GMOs,” said ESP president Antonio M. Claparols.

05.11.2008

US biotech firms target Philippines for introduction of new GE corn

US-based biotechnology companies Dow AgriSciences and Monsanto are now eyeing markets for more potent and pest-resistant GM corn after having successfully marketed the Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) corn since 2003. Bt corn has the sole trait of being Asiatic corn-borer resistant. Before even setting foot in other Asian countries, biotechnology companies have already seen opportunities in starting out in the Philippines. The country is internationally recognized for having a more established regulatory policy on biotechnology.

05.11.2008

Government of Pakistan & Monsanto jointly propose new Bt Cotton Technology

Pakistani authorities are in favor of introducing Bt cotton cultivation, but through formal means. Cotton growers in the country have also been persistently demanding the availability of formally approved Bt cotton varieties for improving per hectare yield. For the purpose, Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock has been working on a two pronged strategy. Developing the technology through indigenous capabilities as well as inviting the Multi-national Companies to bring in the technology in the country.

04.11.2008

Indian oilseeds output set to rise 5%

”Genetically modified seeds are the only option left to raise output in India. Engineered seeds have already proved successful across the globe. Therefore, India should also start using GM seeds for higher yield and reduce reliance on imports,” says Dorab Mistry, Director of Godrej International.

04.11.2008

The GM genocide: Thousands of Indian farmers are committing suicide after using genetically modified crops

Shankara’s crop had failed - twice. Of course, famine and pestilence are part of India’s ancient story. But the death of this respected farmer has been blamed on something far more modern and sinister: genetically modified crops. Shankara, like millions of other Indian farmers, had been promised previously unheard of harvests and income if he switched from farming with traditional seeds to planting GM seeds instead.

04.11.2008

Change in the roots - GE ayurvedic herbs developed in India

GM technology is moving beyond traditional food crops to create GM herbs and GM trees. Ayurvedic herbs like Ashwagandha, Jivanti and Brahmi have been genetically engineered. Scientists say GM herbs have enhanced medicinal properties. Ayurveda however sees a plant in its totality and not for one quality. Can Ayurveda really be compatible with genetic modification?

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