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.
Viewpoint: EU’s glyphosate reauthorization should depend on science, not precaution
[Editor’s note: Pieter Cleppe is the head of the Brussels office of Open Europe, a non-partisan and independent policy think ...
Monsanto settles GM cotton royalties dispute with Indian seed firms
Three leading Indian cotton seed makers have settled an intellectual property dispute with Monsanto Co over its genetically modified (GM) ...
Glyphosate herbicide negatively affects soil-friendly bacteria, study shows
Cornell researchers found negative consequences of the weed-killing herbicide glyphosate on pseudomonas, a soil-friendly bacteria [read the full study here] ...
Passage of Ugandan biotech law opens access to vitamin-fortified, disease-resistant crops
Genetically engineered crops that promise to benefit both farmers and consumers are poised to enter Uganda’s marketplace now that its ...
Transgenic silkworms engineered to spin tough-fiber spider silk
In Jon Rice’s office is a small incubator full of tiny insect eggs—one of many such incubators kept at Kraig ...
Muscular pigs in Cambodia raise false concerns about GMO technology, safety
Pigs are being bred on a farm in Cambodia, and their enormous size and hulking muscles are raising alarm. The ...
Viewpoint: Dannon’s transition to non-GMO has hurt image as sales decline
[Editor’s note: Michelle Miller is the Farm Babe, is an Iowa-based farmer, public speaker and writer, who lives and works ...
Viewpoint: Attacks against ‘Monsanto shill’ illustrate ridiculous claims of anti-GMO lobbyists
[Editor’s note: David Zaruk is the Risk-Monger. He has been an EU risk and science communications specialist since 2000, active ...
University of Florida’s Kevin Folta’s unique libel suit against New York Times faces long odds
A pro-GMO professor, University of Florida plant scientist, Kevin Folta who claims he has been defamed by the New York Times’ ...
Opinions on GMOs less swayed by facts as food becomes synonymous with religion
Personal food preferences aren’t really a rational choice. They’re more like an ideology that’s bordering on a religion. ... Gillian ...
What’s the future of meatless burgers and other ‘synthetic foods’?
[Editor’s note: Jaqueline Rowarth is chief scientist at the Environmental Protection Authority of New Zealand] Both Impossible Burger and Perfect ...
Plan for farmers in Boulder County forced to transition away from GMO crops stalls
Boulder County open space farmers facing a forced transition away from GMO crops are asking for a time out as ...
Viewpoint: Climate change, pesticides endanger monarch butterfly populations
The life cycle of the monarch hinges on the availability of milkweed, but the prevalence of the herbicide Roundup has ...
Group fitness more important than individual fitness for high-yielding crops, study shows
Survival of the fittest is a fundamental concept in Darwin's theory of natural selection which drives evolution. However, when it ...
Aquabounty and food activists clash over need for labels for GMO salmon
Four-and-a-half tons of genetically modified salmon have been released into the Canadian food market, and consumers have no way of ...
For consumers to embrace high-tech meat, producers must address sustainability concerns
Plant-based and cultured meat producers see themselves promoting sustainability, promising healthier options in a world that demands convenience and good ...
Ben and Jerry’s announces organic dairy line in Europe, pledges ‘no glyphosate traces’
Ben & Jerry’s has moved to cut all glyphosate-tainted ingredients from its production chain and introduce an “organic dairy” line ...
Non-browning genetically engineered ‘Arctic apples’ now on sale–without GMO label
[Arctic] apples are genetically altered to suppress browning and may be offered for sale as bagged slices in up to ...
Drought-tolerant maize could increase food security in Zimbabwe
A new study from scientists with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) shows that drought tolerant (DT) maize ...
Gene identified for disease resistance in bananas, may stave off ‘bananapocalypse’
For decades, biotech researchers and conventional breeders were foiled in their efforts to bring disease resistance to the Cavendish [banana] ...
Viewpoint: Glyphosate herbicide’s ‘tough year’ could get much worse
Monsanto’s flagship weed killer, Roundup, has had a tough year. And it could get worse. With Roundup at the center ...
Has the Non-GMO label fever peaked? Major vegetable packing firm removes ‘fear perpetuating’ label
One year ago, Mann Packing went through the process of getting some of its vegetable products Non-GMO Project Verified. Now, ...
Rich people care more about perceived ‘naturalness’, environmental impact than lower-income food buyers
[Editor’s Note: Jayson Lusk is a food and agricultural economist and head of the Agricultural Economics Department at Purdue University.] ...
Is climate change to blame for disappearing bumblebees?
[Researchers] have discovered one of the reasons why bumblebees are disappearing – global warming’s effect on flowering times. Scientists at ...
Despite drift issue, Monsanto sees ‘surge’ of farmers buying dicamba-resistant GMO soybean seeds
Monsanto Co. posted a surprise fourth-quarter profit and said it still expects a surge in sales of a controversial line ...
India investigating reports of cotton farmers growing unapproved improved Monsanto GMO variety
A top Indian cotton-producing state has ordered an inspection of fields planted with an unapproved variety of genetically modified seeds ...
Crops and chemicals: What does the future hold for GMOs and pesticides?
[Editor's note: The following is a Q&A with Paul Vincelli, a plant pathology professor at the University of Kentucky.] Farmers are ...
