'Animal-stress' signal improves plant drought resilience

A team of Australian and German researchers has discovered a novel pathway that plants can use to save water and improve their drought tolerance.

Ethics report brings EU closer to decision on gene editing in agriculture

Using genome editing technologies in plants could help the EU ensure food security and reduce the impact of current agriculture practice on the climate, according to new report by the European Group on Ethics in science and new technologies (EGE). Allowing gene editing for precision breeding would help the EU achieve goals stated in its Farm to Fork strategy, of reducing use of fertilisers by 30 per cent and turning 25% of agricultural land over to organic farming by 2030. “There is a need to ensure food security, provide renewable resources for fuel, feed and fibre, safeguard the retention of biodiversity and protect the environment,” the report says. “Current forms of agriculture contribute significantly to the anthropogenic climate crisis.” The ethicists also call for broader and more inclusive societal debate on genome editing, for better monitoring of regulatory and scientific developments in the field, and moves to establish a system of global governance of gene editing technologies. EGE looked at the impact of gene editing in humans, animals and plants, concluding that in agriculture, the EU should speed up its adoption for plant breeding, to keep up with international competition and support food production. Gene editing of plants is comparable to current breeding techniques that use radiation or chemicals to genetically manipulate seeds, or to what can be achieved by the natural, but laborious process of crossing different cultivars. According to the Euroseeds association, the regulation of genome editing that is comparable to conventional methods should be proportional to the risk - and light in touch. Petra Jorasch, manager of plant breeding innovation advocacy at Euroseeds, said without improvements in plant breeding, Farm to Fork will reduce agricultural productivity. “If you take [pesticides and fertilisers] from farmers, you need some kind of innovation to compensate,” she said. Catching up with the rest of the world Precision breeding of plants through gene editing cannot b...

From locusts to fires, agriculture faces growing threats: UN

The increasing frequency and severity of natural disasters ranging from massive fires to locust invasions is putting food production systems at risk, the UN warned Thursday.

Spain's agri-minister: We are EU's 'vegetable garden' thanks to innovation, quality

Meet the EU farmers using fewer pesticides to make agriculture greener

One of the EU's green goals is to reduce the use of harmful pesticides by 50% by 2030. To achieve this goal, educational initiatives and new methods are being taught to new generation of farmers across Europe. #FarmToFork

Women farmers 'essential' for future, says French agriculture minister

An increasing number of women in France are entering the agricultural world, dominated by men for so long. EURACTIV France takes a closer look at the role of women farmers in the country.

'Our forests are sick,' Germany's agriculture minister says

The German agriculture minister presented on Wednesday (24 February) a worrying annual report on the condition of German forests, which again highlights the dramatic effects of climate change on the ecosystem.

Horizon Europe to fund research on genome editing in agriculture

Horizon Europe is to allocate €5 million for projects aimed at understanding the benefits and risks of genome editing technologies in agriculture over the next two years, according to a leaked draft work programme. The move is in support of the ‘Farm to Fork’ plan to reduce the use of fertilisers by 30 per cent and turn 25 per cent of agricultural land over to organic farming. To reach these objectives, the Commission says the EU needs to “enable major advances in the life sciences and biotechnology, in new genomic techniques, such as gene/genome editing.” Plans for the €5 million call come after EU agriculture ministers called on the Commission last October to enable the use of “new innovative ingredients and techniques” to boost sustainable food production, once they are shown to be safe for humans, animals and the environment. The headline figure for the call is only indicative, and the Commission could fund proposals that go beyond this figure. Also last October, French scientist Emmanuelle Charpentier, director at the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin, and her collaboration partner Jennifer Doudna, were awarded the Nobel prize in chemistry “for the development of a method for genome editing.” But as things stand, precision breeding of plants with gene editing technologies cannot be used in the EU, following a 2018 ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ), which founds genome editing is subject to the 2001 EU directive banning genetically modified organisms (GMOs). In an early post-Brexit move, the UK last month launched an industry consultation on gene editing, as it seeks to move away from EU regulations on genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Depending on the outcome, there will be a second consultation on changing the definition of a GMO. The UK government view is that organisms produced by gene editing or by other genetic technologies, should not be regulated as GMOs if they could have been produced by traditional breeding methods. The proposed €5...

Renewables overtook fossil fuels as EU’s main power source in 2020

Renewables generated 38% of the EU’s electricity in 2020, overtaking coal and gas to become the main source of electricity for the first time ever in Europe, according to fresh data released on Monday (25 January).