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John LaRose Jr. John LaRose Jr.
shared this article 4 years ago
Topics: Precision AG , Agriculture Global, Economics, GMO's, Crop Diseases, Genes /Genetics, World Population,
John LaRose Jr. John LaRose Jr.
shared this article 4 years ago
Topics: Agriculture Global, Economics, Sustainability, GMO's, Research, Ag Europe, Genes /Genetics, World Hunger, Weather,

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...

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TOPIC(S): Agriculture Global, GMO's,
John LaRose Jr. John LaRose Jr.
shared this article 4 years ago
Topics: Wheat, Food/Nutrition, Sustainability, GMO's, Ag United Kingdom, Genes /Genetics, World Hunger, World Population, Education,
John LaRose Jr. John LaRose Jr.
shared this article 4 years ago
Topics: Agriculture Global, Sustainability, GMO's, Research, CRISPR/Gene Editing, Genes /Genetics, World Hunger, World Population, Education,

Tweaking corn kernels with CRISPR - Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

Corn—or maize—has changed over thousands of years from weedy plants that make ears with less than a dozen kernels to the cobs packed with hundreds of juicy kernels that we see on farms today. Powerful DNA-editing techniques such as CRISPR can speed up that process. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) Professor David Jackson and his...

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Nancy Kavazanjian Nancy Kavazanjian
shared this article 4 years ago
Topics: Food/Nutrition, GMO's,
John LaRose Jr. John LaRose Jr.
shared this article 4 years ago
Topics: GMO's, Ag Europe, Genes /Genetics, Government / Policies, Education,

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...

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TOPIC(S): Corn/Maize, Agriculture US, GMO's, Research, Ag Asia / Pacific,

02/09/2021 SOURCE: www.agriculture.com

China finds illegal work on genetically modified corn, cotton seed

BEIJING, Feb 9 (Reuters) - China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said on Tuesday it had found eight companies and research institutes that illegally produced or carried out research on genetically modified (GM) seeds. The companies included two seed marketing companies in northeast Liaoning province and two corn breeders in northwest Xinjiang province who were producing GM corn seed. The ministry said seeds were confiscated and the companies fined. China does not permit the production or planting of GM corn.

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TOPIC(S): Food/Nutrition, GMO's, FDA, USDA, Consumer/Retail,

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Matt Brechwald is the world's most prolific agricultural podcaster. Consistently podcasting since 2014 Matt has hosted well over 1,000 podcasts about agriculture and conducted hundreds of radio interviews as well. From his farm in Kuna, Idaho, Matt has developed the term "Off-Farm Income" into a multi-national brand.