In 2022, Health Canada and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada announced that crop varieties developed with gene editing technology will not be subject to the same regulatory requirements as genetically modified organisms.
Though many within the agriculture industry praised the decision as a win for crop breeders, and Canadians more generally, some academic researchers question whether individuals in the public sector will be able to seize the opportunity.
At issue for researchers is the fact that many end markets have taken a different regulatory stance than Canada on gene editing, and there is an ever-shrinking pool of research dollars.
Stuart Smyth, associate professor and chair of Agri-Food Innovation and Sustainability Enhancement at the University of Saskatchewan, is a long-time advocate of gene editing and other biotechnologies in agriculture.
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“The days of expecting the federal government to fund everything are gone. We need public-private and producer partnerships,” says Smyth.
“Everybody is at the table, but I think the federal government needs to signal that movement. If the feds are not providing any new grant opportunities, there’s less incentive there for others to make commitments.”
