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.
Indian government delays approved GM crop field trials following pressure
The Centre has put on hold field trials of genetically-modified (GM) crops following pressure from the Swadeshi Jagaran Manch (SJM) ...
Term ‘genetic modification’ loaded with baggage, undermining rational debate
With food security firmly on the international agenda, there's a growing appetite to look again at the opportunities promised by ...
Anti-GMO activist Vandana Shiva has long history of rejecting science
Vandana Shiva is a chain reaction that cannot be stopped. It can only be witnessed from a safe distance. The ...
Shouldn’t anti-GMO activists be known as ‘Whole Food shills’?
Until recently, I was only vaguely aware that empty accusations of shilling were used as arguments in sensible lines of ...
GM critic says biotech proponents perpetuate African dependency and poverty
The recent article, GM scaremongering in Africa is disarming the fight against poverty, published in the Guardian’s PovertyMatters Blog on ...
Latest Chinese restriction on GM corn ‘de facto embargo’ for U.S. grain exports
The biggest U.S. grain export association called on China on Thursday to rescind its latest restriction of a GMO corn strain, saying ...
Chinese researchers edit genes to make fungal-resistant wheat
Advanced genome-editing techniques have been used to create a strain of wheat resistant to a destructive fungal pathogen—called powdery mildew—that ...
Center for Food Safety intervenes to defend Vermont GMO labeling law
Two advocacy groups are looking to help defend the state against an industry group lawsuit against Vermont’s GMO labeling law. The ...
Anti-GMO groups seek to remove Europe’s chief scientific adviser
If you can't change the science, change the scientists. This is what nine groups opposed to genetically modified organisms want ...
Fast-growing AquaBounty GM salmon ‘precedent-setting’, offers sustainability advantages
A genetically modified salmon, called AquAdvantage, is awaiting FDA approval, and, when it does, the fish should be available for ...
Oregon GMO labeling measure ‘misleads rather than enlightens’
Labels can inform or mislead. Our marketplace is literally drowning in labels, most of which have little meaning except to ...
Africa ‘missed out’ on Green Revolution, needs ‘growth spark’ from biotech
Sub-Saharan Africa's agricultural sector needs to harvest the fruits of biotechnology in order to establish sustainable development, says a report. A ...
GMOs could save honeybees by eliminating virus and mites
President Obama has made saving pollinators a top priority, announcing the assembly of a task force designated to saving the ...
Oregon’s GMO labeling initiative qualifies for November ballot
Oregonians will decide in November whether they want to mandate that companies label genetically modified foods. The Secretary of State's Office ...
Do Hawaii counties have authority to regulate GM crops and pesticides?
The question of whether or not counties have the authority to regulate pesticide use and genetically engineered crops was at ...
‘Hateful’ example of anti-GMO activism illustrates dangers when emotion overpowers reason
There is a frightening, hateful turn of events taking place right now that anyone involved in the GMO issue, or ...
Better for Monsanto to surrender on labeling battle to win war over GMOs
An ABC news poll conducted last year found that 52 percent of people believe that GMOs are unsafe, and another 13 percent ...
2014 World Food Prize recipient: ‘Shameful’ if India lets biotech pass
Dr Sanjaya Rajaram often remembers that his mentor, Nobel Peace prize winner Dr Norman Borlaug, always said: “Peace does not ...
Mike Adams claims Monsanto set up “kill GMO supporters” website, as scientists, journalists face death threats
Knight Science Journalism's Paul Raeburn has weighed in on the increasingly sordid Mike Adams fiasco. He writes: An anti-GMO activist ...
Nigerian scientists declare opponents of biotech ‘enemies’ of African development
As the controversy over the safety of biotechnology continues, Nigerian scientists yesterday reiterated their stand on the safety of the ...
Independent safety research needed to rebuild public trust in GM products
The Dutch Commission on Genetic Modification (COGEM), a statutory advisory body of scientists created to provide advice to government on ...
Anti-GMO activist campaign slams biofortified GM crops, claims biodiversity ‘far better’
Attempts to genetically modify food staples, such as crops and cattle, to increase their nutritional value and overall performance have ...
Study claiming organic more nutritious captures why it’s harder to figure out risk
A study in the news last week perfectly captures why it’s getting harder and harder to figure out what’s risky ...
Video: Africa’s leaders need education about role of biotech in agriculture
As a boy growing up on the shores of Lake Victoria in Kenya, Harvard international development professor Calestous Juma noticed ...
How GM crops can help address India’s food security problems
The new environment minister Prakash Javadekar is yet to take a call on allowing further trials of genetically-modified (GM) crops ...
Editorial: Consumers want transparency, Congress should mandate GMO labeling nationwide
The fight over genetic engineering boils down to this underlying disagreement: Consumers want to know what is in the foods they ...
Plant-based, animal-free cow’s milk soon to be reality with GM yeast
Biohackers Ryan Pandya and Perumal Gandhi are working on crafting a plant-based concoction that’s nearly identical in makeup to what’s ...
