GENET news: Misc

04.09.2007

China legislates to tolerate scientific failures

Chinese lawmakers are legislating for the first time to allow scientists to report failures during the process of innovation without blotting their records in future funding applications. They say they want to lift some of the pressure on scientists to report successes to create a better environment for making innovations. Legislators are discussing a draft amendment to the Law on Science and Technology Progress that states: ”Scientists and technicians, who have initiated research with a high risk of failure will still have their expenses covered if they can provide evidence that they have tried their best when they failed to achieve their goals.”

30.07.2007

Delta & Pine and Turk Deltapine agree to pay a $300,000 penalty to settle FCPA charges

On July 25 and 26, 2007, the Commission filed two settled enforcement proceedings charging Delta & Pine Land Company, a Scott, Mississippi-based company engaged in the production and marketing of cottonseed, and its subsidiary, Turk Deltapine, Inc., with violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. [...] In the administrative proceeding, the Commission ordered the respondents to cease and desist from such violations, and required Delta & Pine to retain an independent consultant to review and make recommendations concerning the company's FCPA compliance policies and procedures. In the federal lawsuit, Delta & Pine and Turk Deltapine agreed to the entry of a final judgment requiring them to pay jointly and severally a $300,000 penalty. Delta & Pine was acquired on June 1, 2007 by Monsanto Company; the conduct charged by the Commission occurred prior to the acquisition.

12.07.2007

GeneWatch (UK) welcomes MPs‘ call for strong ‘polluter pays‘ legislation

GeneWatch welcomes today’s publication of a report by a Parliamentary Select Committee that criticises the Government’s approach to implementing the Environmental Liability Directive. The MPs criticised the government’s approach of minimum implementation of EU Directives and said the Government must properly explain the reasons for its policy choices. They were particularly critical of DEFRA stating: ” It is surprising that DEFRA has not been more robust in its defence of the environment; it appears that the DTI ’business-friendly’ agenda has been predominant ”.

08.03.2007

Food for thought: Russia joins the battle over GM products

On July 1, the city of Moscow will introduce a voluntary system of food labels indicating that a product does not contain genetically modified (GM) ingredients.
Europe has recently been engaged in a battle with the World Trade Organization (WTO), which, taking its cue from the United States, Canada and Argentina, considers the European Union’s moratorium on GM products illegal. Meanwhile, Europeans have been collecting signatures and protesting against GM foods. In the United States, a lawsuit was filed against the Department of Agriculture after it legalized the commercial production of genetically modified alfalfa sprouts. The court found the agency’s actions illegal. All these events, which involve environmental, agricultural, social and political issues, unfolded during the month of February, highlighting the high profile taken on by the GM controversy. Nevertheless, it would be naive to expect the world to adopt a unified stance on the issue.

08.03.2007

Farmers ask U.S. Federal Court to stop predatory pricing of glyphosate by Monsanto

American Corn Growers Association (ACGA) has filed a lawsuit in federal court to halt the anticompetitive practices of Monsanto as they relate to the marketing of Roundup® herbicide. The antitrust action, filed in the United States Court for the District of Delaware, alleges that Monsanto has violated federal and state antitrust laws by using its monopoly power in the herbicide market and biotechnology seed trait markets to unlawfully monopolize and restrain competition in the market for glyphosate herbicides, and has otherwise acted to maintain supra-competitive pricing for its glyphosate herbicides.

07.03.2007

Are EU GMO rules starving the poor?

A debate organised by Friends of Europe, an EU policy think-tank, explored whether the EU’s strict authorisation procedures on genetically modified food are preventing developing countries from investing in potentially lifesaving technologies.

07.03.2007

U.S. SEC sues former senior Monsanto manager Charles Martin for authorizing a bribe of $50,000

On March 6, 2007, the Commission filed a settled complaint against Charles Martin (”Martin”), the former Government Affairs Director for Asia for Monsanto Company (”Monsanto”), a global producer of technology-based solutions and agricultural products. In its complaint, the Commission alleged that in 2002, Martin authorized and directed an Indonesian consulting firm (”Consulting Firm”) to pay a bribe of $50,000 to a senior Indonesian Ministry of Environment official (”the Senior Environment Official”). The complaint alleged that the illegal payment was made to influence the Senior Environment Official to repeal language in a decree that was unfavorable to Monsanto’s business in Indonesia.

07.03.2007

Key Monsanto patent rejected

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has rejected a key patent in Monsanto’s Roundup Ready arsenal, possibly stripping the agribusiness giant of its power to license the technology to farmers. St. Louis-based Monsanto has the right to appeal the decision or try to reach a compromise by reducing the breadth of the patent. It has 60 days to respond.

05.03.2007

DuPont executes investments to accelerate new seed product development

DuPont today announced it is executing its $100 million reinvestment plan to increase its speed-to-market for new seed products. The plan includes the addition of more than 400 positions, mainly in research and development in its wholly owned subsidiary Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. ”The global demand for agricultural crops is very strong,” said William S. Niebur, vice president – DuPont Crop Genetics Research & Development. ”We have the science to help farmers and others across the value chain meet the growing demand. This additional investment will allow us to put that science to work for our customers faster.”

05.03.2007

Brazil senate approves resolution to hasten GMO approval

Brazil’s Senate Tuesday approved a resolution that would cut the number of votes needed for the approval of genetically modified organisms - a move that could have widespread implications for multinational makers of transgenic seeds such as Monsanto Co., Syngenta and Bayer CropScience. The resolution, however, still must gain the signature of Brazil President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva before it passes into law. ”President Lula now has 15 days to accept or not accept the Senate’s resolution,” a spokeswoman for Brazil’s Biosafety Commission, or CTNBio, said in a phone interview with Dow Jones Newswires.

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