###BASE_URL###

GENET-news

To stay informed you can subscribe to the GENET-news list.

 

2009-06-22 |

Biotechnology to increase agriculture output in Azerbaijan: American University Professor

The introduction of biotechnology in agriculture in Azerbaijan will help local farmers to significantly increase their incomes, professor at the American Tuskegee University Channapatna Prakash said. The main purpose of Prakash’s visit to Azerbaijan is to improving understanding of the production genetic modification products and biotechnology, as well as its scientific justification. ??According to him, the introduction of biotechnology will increase the agricultural productivity, and improve product quality and reduce toxins.

2009-06-22 |

Nobel laureate bats for GM food

Nobel laureate Dr Richard J Roberts today said genetically modified food was safe and those opposing it were doing so out of vested interest. [...] he flayed the European Green Party for whipping up opposition against GM food. ”They are pursuing it to meet their own political ends,” he claimed. [...] ”This technology is not new. It existed 10,000 years ago in Mesopotamia.

2009-06-22 |

Monsanto India launches SHARE initaitive to improve farmers’ live

Under the project, the company is planning to identify 10,000 corn and cotton farmers across Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh to improve their socio-economic conditions by increasing crop productivity. This is a four-year programme which Monsanto is planning to kick off during the current kharif season. Delhi-based non-governmental organisation ISAP (Indian Society of Agribusiness Professionals) will conduct a study to identify small and marginal farmers from the three states.

2009-06-22 |

The devastating effects of GMOs on the future of soil

A recent study was conducted in Vidharbha, India to determine the effect of Bt (Bacillius thuringiensis) cotton on the microbial population of various soil micro-organisms. The results indicated a significant decline in total microbial biomass in the Bt soil. If current trends continue, the researcher estimated that 6.7 million hectares of planted Bt transgenic crops in India were in danger of becoming sterile and unable to grown anything within the next 10 years.

2009-06-22 |

GM crops ten years on: The undying promise

Detailed analysis of the studies in question reveals a rather more complex and mixed picture – one that should strongly qualify any claim that ’GM crops are good for the poor’. Certainly, some farmers have benefited from the new technology, but others, especially smaller and poorer farmers, have not. The data also confirms that the impacts of GM technology depend on an awful lot more than one or a few new genes inserted into a crop plant.

2009-06-20 |

Promising anti-HIV microbicide can be produced by GE plants

Scientists have developed an anti-HIV microbicide that can be mass-produced in plants — in quantities large enough to make it affordable for people in developing countries, they say. The microbicide, which has been found to prevent HIV transmission in cells, is a combination of two promising microbicide compounds — monoclonal antibody b12 and the protein cyanovirin-N.

2009-06-20 |

GE crops - Poisoning the planet

Roundup Ready (RR) soybean accounts for 70% of all GM crops and is tolerant to Monsanto’s Roundup herbicide, glyphosate. Much of the soybean crop is grown by large-scale farmers for biodiesel and for export as animal feed to China and Europe. The impacts of soybean expansion in South America go beyond the typical effects of monocultures heavily sprayed with herbicides, but include deforestation, soil fertility mining, food insecurity and the expulsion of small farmers, thus exacerbating rural conflicts.

2009-06-20 |

Pigs, people may soon eat their way to flu resistance with GE pharma corn

A team of researchers from Iowa State University is putting flu vaccines into the genetic makeup of corn, which may someday allow pigs and humans to get a flu vaccination simply by eating corn or corn products. [...] The corn vaccine would also work in humans when they eat corn or even corn flakes, corn chips, tortillas or anything that contains corn, said Harris.

2009-06-20 |

Space GE tomato project offers potential for drought and disease resistance

Arkansas - home of thousands of backyard gardens, farmer’s markets, and a summer festival that pays annual homage to the tomato - also is home to a team of scientists based at UALR that is developing a tomato plant hearty enough to grow in space and surviving down-to-earth droughts and disease. More than providing fresh produce for astronauts on extended missions to Mars, the research has important implications for developing crops resistant to drought and other stresses while improving the nutritional value of food.

2009-06-20 |

U.S. scientists produce GM crops without foreign genes

Scientists have unveiled a new way of altering the genetic sequence of a crop to produce a desired trait without needing to introduce foreign genes. [...] Kamonji Wachiira, an environmental consultant based in Ottawa, Canada, says the technique sounds promising but seems to be largely untested. [...] ”The new trait may well be accompanied by latent, recessive or unintended but risky traits.”

2009-06-20 |

Oxitec (UK) allowed to test GE mosqitoes in India

Trials on the Genetically Modified (GM) mosquito engineered by researchers at the University of Oxford to control dengue/chikungunya are under way at a laboratory near Chennai. The Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India, gave permission to conduct the evaluation in India. It is in progress at the International Institute of Biotechnology And Toxicology (IIBAT) at Padappai near Chennai. The trials have reached the second stage. ”It is a promising technology which deploys genetically sterile Aedes aegypti male mosquitoes to fight the disease-causing ones,” S.S. Vasan, Visiting Research Fellow at the University of Oxford and Head of Public Health, Oxitec (Oxford Insect Technologies).

2009-06-19 |

Nigeria approves N40m for GE cowpea research

The Federal government has approved N40 million for the 1st phase of research into pest-resistance Cowpea crops in Nigeria. The research which will last between 8 and 12 years has commenced with a confined field trial of insect resistant transgenic cowpea [...] He said that the genetically engineered research will increase the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country "as Nigeria currently accounts for 2.1 million metric tonnes annually which is more than half of total world cowpea production".

2009-06-19 |

GE crops can boost small farmers’ incomes in Uganda

SMALL-HOLDER farmers’ incomes can increase if they adopt genetically-modified (GM) crops, a director at the International Food Policy Research Institute’s (IFPRI) has observed. ”In the coming years, growing populations, stagnating agricultural productivity and increasing climate change will make it more difficult for Africa to tackle poverty, hunger and nutrition,” Mark Rosegrant said.
Rosegrant said in order to fight these challenges, many African countries, including Uganda, are increasingly assessing a range of tools and technologies like bio-technologies, which hold great promise for improving crop yields, household incomes and nutritional quality of food in an environmentally-sustainable way.

2009-06-19 |

Forum launched to discuss benefits of GE crops for Tanzania

A forum has been launched to discuss benefits of agricultural biotechnology for Tanzania. Speaking during the launch of the Tanzania chapter of the Open Forum for Agricultural Biotechnology (OFAB, the director-general of the Tanzania Commission for Science and Technology, Dr Hassan Mshinda, said a lack of information on the opportunities offered by biotechnology had resulted in a slow adoption of agro-technologies that could help the country feed itself. He said developing countries had been debating merits and demerits of biotechnology in food crops while many of their people were undernourished.

2009-06-19 |

Monsanto-Cargill promoting GM in Ghana - Update

The African Biotechnology and Biosafety Policy Platform (ABBPP) is actually a lobby group that promotes creating Biosafety legislation in African countries in order to allow GM to ’legitimately’ operate in those countries. [...] Ghanaians should bear in mind one of the main people who is responsible for the long, quiet push for GMO in Ghana is a man known as Walter Alhassan.

2009-06-19 |

A layered approach to biosafety in Southern Africa

A harmonised, or collective, regulatory biosafety system in Southern Africa is important for many reasons. In particular, geographical proximity and the inevitable spill-over effects of some biotechnologies mean countries must work together to solve problems. Shared policies could, for example, help national institutions prepare for the reality of GM products spreading across porous borders. Cooperation would also help build economies of scale large enough to attract favourable technologies and products to the region, while creating a strong force to resist unwanted technology.

2009-06-19 |

GM should not just be dismissed, nor just accepted in Africa

After a protracted court battle of seven years, a small South African environmental organisation won a major legal victory against the multinational agri-chemical and seed giant Monsanto. In a judgment in South Africa’s highest court, the Constitutional Court, this month, Judge Albie Sachs overturned a previous ruling by a High Court judge that Biowatch had to pay the costs of Monsanto and the government’s department of agriculture.

2009-06-18 |

UK Government launches new environmental science agency

The new agency is likely to undertake some of the government’s most high profile and contentious scientific projects, including work on the environmental impact of genetically modified crops, animal health scares, falling biodiversity levels, hazardous chemical regulations, and the effects of climate change on food security. [...] It added that the agency would also help streamline risk assessment processes, removing delays for businesses involved in both national and international trade.

2009-06-18 |

German round table discussion on agricultural biotechnology without concrete results

Germany’s Research Minister, Annette Schavan, and Agriculture Minister Ilse Aigner invited thirty representatives from science, industry, politics and associations to discuss the status of agricultural biotechnology in Germany. The churches were also represented. Today’s discussions in Berlin did not produce any concrete results, but further round tables are to be arranged to discuss individual issues.

2009-06-18 |

GM canola up as protests continue in Western Australia

THE Organic Growers Association of WA (OGAWA) staged a silent vigil on the steps of Parliament House last week, to voice their concerns against the growing of genetically modified (GM) canola in WA this year. OGAWA vice-president Dr Maggie Lilith, said her organisation’s members were extremely upset and angry about the GM plantings. She said they were gravely concerned about being exposed to GM contamination and faced the potential loss of their organic accreditation because of the controversial canola crops.

2009-06-18 |

Ministers accused of trying to bring GM crops to Britain ’by the back door’

Ministers were yesterday accused of trying to bring GM crops to the UK ’by the back door’. The Government has decided to support the cultivation of two new types of genetically modified maize or sweetcorn which contain a toxin that kills certain pests. It will vote in favour of approving the crops in the EU, making Britain the chief supporter of the controversial technology in Europe.

2009-06-18 |

Negros Occidental’s (Philippines) ban on GMO products stays

The ban on products with living Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) will continue in Negros Occidental as recommended by the adhoc team that was created by Governor Isidro Zayco to study the matter. However, due to lack of equipment for its implementation, the Committee recommended a one-year extension to allow the entry of non-living GMO products in Negros Occidental. Board Member Adolfo Mangao, chair of the Committee and Committee on Agriculture of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, said the members voted 9-5 for the stay of the Ordinance No. 007 series of 2007 that bans GMO in the province.

2009-06-18 |

DuPont fires back at Monsanto’s patent lawsuit

DuPont fired back at Monsanto’s patent lawsuit Tuesday, telling a federal court it did not err in combining its genetically modified soybeans with Monsanto’s herbicide product. The Wilmington, Del.-based company says an existing licensing agreement gives it wide berth to pair Monsanto’s Roundup Ready, which bolsters a plant’s tolerance against weed-killing chemicals, with its own soybeans and herbicide line, a process known as ”stacking.” ”Monsanto’s lawsuit is another tactic used to restrict the availability of competitive products,” Jim Borel, head of DuPont’s agricultural business, said in a filing with a federal court in St. Louis.

2009-06-16 |

Proper management can delay the spread of glyphosate resistant weeds

It did not take too long for the first weeds to become glyphosate resistant in cropland. Although not the first instance of glyphosate resistance worldwide, the first evolved glyphosate-resistant weed reported in a glyphosate-resistant crop was horseweed in 2001. To date, populations of 15 species have been reported to be resistant to glyphosate worldwide. The most problematic glyphosate-resistant weeds in the United States are Palmer amaranth, common waterhemp, common ragweed, giant ragweed and horseweed.

2009-06-16 |

Western Australian Minister denies trade with Japan threatened by GM canola

Western Australia’s $800 million agri-business trade is not at risk from trials of genetically modified canola despite opposition claims, WA Agriculture Minister Terry Redman says. Emails from WA’s trade office in Japan reveal agri-business trade with Japan could be at risk if genetically-modified crops are introduced in the state, the WA opposition says.
The emails were obtained by opposition trade minister Mark McGowan through a freedom of information request.

2009-06-16 |

GM canola profits ’exaggerated’ in Western Australia

A report on genetically modified canola from a State Government appointed reference group shows that touted economic benefits to farmers have been exaggerated, opponents of the technology say. Network for Concerned Farmers spokeswoman Julie Newman said the report showed there was no financial advantage in using the technology. WA’s first commercial trials of GM canola have been planted across 20 sites over 850ha. Proponents of Roundup Ready canola hope it will help manage weeds, give them another crop option and improve profits.

2009-06-16 |

Dow GM Soya Crop: a step back into the Dark Ages

Dow AgroSciences’ recent request to the regulatory authorities in Brazil to field test a new GM soya bean tolerant to weedkillers 2,4 D and haloxyfop R has been described by GM Freeze as ”a step back into the Dark Ages”. 2,4 D, which kills broad leaf weeds, has been approved since the 1940s and was a constituent part of Agent Orange – the defoliant used by the US during the war in Vietnam in the 1960s and 1970s. It is rated as ”moderately toxic” and is considered by some authorities to be a possible cancer-causing agent.

2009-06-16 |

Monsanto India seeks approval to sell GE herbicide tolerant corn

Seed producer Monsanto India Ltd has sought regulatory approval in India to sell its genetically modified (GM) corn that is tolerant to herbicides and provides protection from pests. ”We have started the regulatory process for approval of this new GM crop in the Indian market,” said Harvey G. Glick, senior director, scientific affairs, Asia, Monsanto Singapore Co. (Pte) Ltd.

2009-06-16 |

Indian Planning Commission says no to GM food crops

After facing stiff opposition from environment ministry, the proposal to introduce genetically modified (GM) food in India has run into trouble with Planning Commission as well. In the first public positioning by the government, the highest planning body has shown the red light to GM technology in food crops. However, the plan panel has fewer objections on introduction of GM technology in non-edible agro products like cotton. While food safety concerns remain, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen said India’s crop exports could be severely hit if it allowed GM food crops.

2009-06-15 |

New Zealand High Court GE ruling 'biggest victory in a decade'

A High Court decision to stop AgResearch's bid to expand research into genetically modified animals has been described as the biggest victory in a decade against genetic engineering field trials by Marlborough green campaigner Steffan Browning.

Go to: ← ... 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 ... →

Overview

News

Go to: ← ... 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 ... →

Go to: ← ... 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 ... →

Home: GENET

GENET-news & GENET-forum

GENET-news is providing a daily news service on a range of topics regarding genetic engineering. We are screening the worldwide English news, press releases and other publications to provide you with a strategic selection of information. GENET-news enables you to stay informed about all aspects of the global controversy around GE technologies and GE organisms. You can subscribe by  email.

The GENET-forum list provides you with additional background information and more voluminous reports. It is only open for GENET members. Please contact the  coordinator for membership and subscription.