Gene editing is the biggest technical advance in bioscience since the discovery of “recombinant DNA” technology….[t]hat….led to the commercialization of genetically modified (GM) crops in the 1990s. Now gene editing (GE) is….giving researchers a fast, reliable way to make precise changes in specific genes. But its use in farming is in the balance after a [2018] European ruling equated it with heavily regulated GM.
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The distinction between gene editing and GM could be crucial for the way regulators treat crops produced with the two technologies….Scientists’ hopes that the EU would take a more liberal attitude to GE were dashed [in July 2018] when the European Court of Justice ruled gene-edited crops should be subject to the same stringent regulations as GMOs.
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But some legal and regulatory experts say the ECJ ruling may not be as far-reaching as plant scientists fear. “If the ECJ ruling were to be interpreted to mean that all genome-edited organisms are by definition GMOs, then this would….result in unenforceable regulation,” says Piet van der Meer, who [helped develop] EU GMO regulations. “However, I believe that the ECJ ruling requires further clarification to understand what it actually means.”
Read full, original article: Why the future of gene-edited foods is in the balance
