Science Controversies
GMO labeling push reflects deep misunderstandings of science
Critics say genetically modified foods might be unsafe, but even if they are not, consumers have a right to know ...
Scientists build designer yeast from scratch
Humans have been using what they know about the biological world to make stuff for centuries—from beer to antibiotics. But, ...
British scientists push for government to relax GMO barriers
Many people are pretty fed up with the continuing fuss about GM food and crops. There have been innumerable reviews and ...
When scientific consensus meets GMOs
The information on a scientific consensus is easy enough to find, but for the topic of GMOs it is in ...
Breakthrough biology: First synthetic chromosome for yeast created, capping month of biotech innovations
Scientists have created the first man-made chromosome for yeast, a landmark for synthetic biology that promises to push the boundaries ...
US regulators sitting on non-browning Arctic Apple approval
A Canadian company petitioned USDA regulators two years ago to “deregulate” – approve for unrestricted cultivation and marketing — a ...
Sec of Ag: Technology offers alternative to mandatory GMO labeling
Tom Vilsack, the Secretary of Agriculture, told a House subcommittee his department is talking with the U.S. Food and Drug ...
US farmers continue to sow GM corn banned by China
Six months after China began rejecting shipments of a genetically modified corn developed by Switzerland's Syngenta AG, two of the ...
Farmers clash in Hawaii court over GMO disclosure requirements
Does requiring farmers growing genetically modified crops to register with Hawaii County result in the release of proprietary information? That’s ...
Holding Monsanto and other corporations accountable
What does it mean to hold a corporation accountable and responsible? The Monsanto Roundup resistance story has been in plain sight for ...
Beefing up livestock with GM crops
New methods of genome editing for precise DNA changes of living organisms could make varieties of crops easier for farm animals ...
Birth of ‘living materials’ at MIT combines synthetic biology, materials engineering
Hot on the heels of the creation of bionic plants, MIT has announced the development of "living materials" using bacteria, ...
Non-GMO beer? Label makes no sense
Beer's usual ingredients - water, barley or wheat, hops and yeast - are not available as genetically modified crops, yet ...
India can only gain from more GM crops
An Indian technical expert committee recently recommended that the Supreme Court declare a 10-year ban on field trials of GM ...
GM and organics can coexist
The biggest farming group in the US has backed moves to promote coexistence between organic and biotech farmers. With a ...
How Grist’s Nathanael Johnson changed his mind on GMOs
Journalist and author Nathanael Johnson was skeptical of genetically-modified organisms (GMOs) when he began a six-month investigative series about their ...
British scientists urge Europe to revamp GMO regulation
Europe’s stringent regulation of genetically modified (GM) crops has no rational basis and should be revamped to allow countries who ...
Organic activist criticizes proposed FDA nutrition labels for leaving GMOs out
In February, First Lady Michelle Obama launched a media blitz to tout the FDA's proposed new rules for nutrition labels on packaged ...
Happy Birthday Norman Borlaug, father of the Green Revolution
March 25, 2014 marks the 100th birthday of Dr. Norman Borlaug (1914-2009), who is widely recognized as the Father of ...
Can you get E.coli poisoning from GMOs?
Biofortified blogger Layla Katiraee takes on a Farm Wars story about how GMOs allegedly cause E.coli poisoning. Katiraee counters points made ...
Greenpeace calls on Philippines to scrap Golden Rice, claims it provides no vitamin benefits
Insisting on the potential threats of GMOs to human health and the environment, environmental groups urged Philippine Agriculture Secretary Proceso ...
GMO corn seed distribution trials in Uganda postponed to 2015
Maize farmers who have been expecting to plant new, improved maize varieties at the National Crop Resources Research Institute (NACRRI) ...
Why Europeans are reluctant to embrace GMOs
Many European Union countries do allow imports of GMO corn and soybeans from the U.S. Those GMO products are used ...
‘Non-GMO’ to trump ‘organic’ as new consumer buzz word in 2014
Consumers want 'Non-GMO' now, more so even than 'organic,' according to a new study published by Progressive Grocer. In their ...
MIT scientists engineer cells that talk to each other
The living and the non-living worlds are not so incompatible after all. A group of researchers have now designed “living ...
How to fight ever-evolving tuberculosis
Earlier this month, health officials in Los Angeles confirmed they are treating a patient for extensively drug resistant tuberculosis — ...
Organic farmer call to action: We can work with GMO farmers to feed the world
The debate should not be whether organics or GMOs are best suited to meet global food challenges. That's a false ...
