Daily Food & Ag Digest
Every day, the staff of the Genetic Literacy Project scours the Web for stories on a range of agricultural and food issues, including the GMO debate, conventional and organic farming, regulations, new breeding technologies and sustainability. We publish excerpts of those stories and encourage our readers to visit the original publications for the complete stories.
Non-farming glyphosate weedkiller uses likely harm endangered species, EPA finds
More than 90% of endangered species are “likely to be adversely affected” by use of glyphosate, but mostly through non-agricultural uses, ...
UK doesn’t want to ‘slavishly follow’ Europe’s pesticide, gene-edited crop rules, secretary of state says
Rural industries such as sheep farming are seeking answers as to what Brexit will mean for them. The implications of ...
Viewpoint: ‘More marketing than science’—Why the case against GM crops is built on misinformation
Consumer Reports, a nonprofit better known for rating cars and dishwashers, wrote about GMOs in its 2014 article “Where GMOs ...
Nematode that liquefies pests could cut insecticide use, study shows
The parasitic nematode, Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita, can significantly reduce losses from invasive slugs. It has been used in Europe as a ...
Gene-edited potato could allow farmers to use ‘less—or even no—insecticide’
A PhD candidate at Michigan State University (MSU), Natalie [Kaiser] specializes in potatoes – in particular, looking at which genes ...
Viewpoint: Biotechnology gave us a COVID vaccine. Could that end the anti-GMO movement?
[T]he anti-GMO movement had been growing ever stronger over the years. But, if the reliably anti-GMO organization U.S. Right to ...
GM Golden Rice commercialization in Philippines ‘far from reality,’ may be delayed until 2023
At a virtual news briefing on [Nov. 23], PhilRice Healthier Rice Project Leader Dr. Renante L. Ordonio said everyone has ...
Lab-grown meat requires fewer farm inputs than livestock, but more energy. Is it really better for the planet?
Cultured meat doesn't require grazing land or tons of feed. Instead it's grown in bioreactors like those already used to ...
Nigeria has approved GM insect-resistant Bt cotton and cowpea. Could drought-tolerant rice and disease-resistant cassava be next?
Patience Koku knows better than most the damage that bollworms can cause to a textile industry. A former fashion entrepreneur, ...
Glyphosate: Deadly ‘poison,’ or biodiversity protection tool? Environmentalists split over controversial weedkiller
.... [A]way from lawsuits and petitions, there are concerns among some opponents of Australia’s invasive weeds that glyphosate – a ...
Ninth Circuit Court refuses to reexamine lawsuit alleging Enlist Duo herbicide approval violated federal law
Enlist Duo’s registration has survived another legal challenge, after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit declined to ...
UK extends license for glyphosate 5 years, will put in place post-Brexit review process
Speaking at the virtual British Crop Production Council (BCPC) 2020 congress, Darren Flynn, head of active substances delivery for the ...
Viewpoint: There’s no such thing as a ‘toxic’ chemical (it’s all based on dose and exposure)—and 4 other common food marketing myths busted
[H]ere are five common “healthy halo” buzzwords to look out for. … 1) Clean Everything from “clean ingredients” to “clean ...
Global crop yields projected to drop as temperatures rise, new study finds
The warmer temperatures associated with climate change are projected to significantly reduce yields of the world’s staple food crops, a ...
CRISPR-edited bananas immune to killer pathogens advance toward commercialization in Africa
For more than two decades, I have been working to improve several staple food crops in Africa, including bananas, plantains, ...
Viewpoint: Eating organic food reduces diabetes risk? Evidence is ‘rather thin’
A recent prospective study finds an inverse association between eating organic and the risk of type 2 diabetes. But the ...
Beyond Meat launches plant-based pork in bid to outcompete Impossible Foods in China
The California-based company unveiled its latest product on [Nov 18]: meatless minced "pork." The new product is intended to mimic ...
Ghana recognizes crop biotech as ‘vital tool’ in food security battle
Ghana continues to be open for import of GM crops, with no restrictions to feed and feed products from other regions ...
Viewpoint: The failure of corn-powered cars – How America’s ethanol subsidies boosted food prices and carbon emissions
E-15 is only available at about 2 to 3% of gas stations in the United States, so for those unaware, it means ...
EU needs new guidelines to evaluate environmental impact of gene-drive mosquitoes, food safety officials say
After being mandated by the European Commission, [European Food Safety Authority's] experts on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) published the scientific ...
Bt insect toxin in GM crops ‘has no negative effects on honey bees,’ study confirms
Cry78Ba1 is Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner (Bacillales: Bacillaceae) (Bt) protein found with high insecticidal activity against the piercing–sucking insect Laodelphax striatellus Fallén (Homoptera: ...
Viewpoint: Farming one of the ‘most inefficient industries.’ The CRISPR revolution could change that
Agriculture is one of the most inefficient industries on the planet. Current industrial farming methods demand unsustainable amounts of water, ...
Consumers remain wary of GM foods, potentially slowing global adoption of biotech crops
Despite nearly three decades in the marketplace and near-universal scientific consensus on their safety, a new international survey finds that ...
Beyond Meat announces 2021 launch of leaner plant-based burgers to satisfy ‘health-conscious consumers’
As demand for plant-based products surge, Beyond Meat is making sure it keeps its health-conscious consumers coming back. The company ...
Golden Rice could illegally make its way to India as country struggles to stay ‘GMO free’
India has traditionally been a ‘no-GMO’ country, a status recently reinforced when the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India ...
Philippines’ major eggplant-producing provinces back insect-resistant Bt GM brinjal approval
Eggplants are susceptible to the eggplant fruit and shoot borer (EFSB), a pest that causes around 70-80% yield loss annually ...
Viewpoint: ‘Frankenfood’? Anti-GMO rhetoric more harmful than ever in a hungry, post-COVID world
With trend culture emphasizing ‘earth-to-table’ recipes and organic ingredients, it’s no wonder that the perception of GMOs as a kind ...
