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.
Ghana biotech group slams Vandana Shiva’s claim that GM foods poisonous
The Ghana Chapter of the Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology (OFAB) has said claims by Indian agro-ecologist, Dr. Vandana Shiva ...
GM giants on Kauai ‘drench’ test crops with pesticides causing islander illnesses
The four transnational corporations that are experimenting with genetically engineered crops on Kauai have transformed part of the island into ...
GMO bananas enriched with vitamin A to benefit millions in Africa set for human trials in US
A super-enriched banana genetically engineered to improve the lives of millions of people in Africa will soon have its first ...
Big Food spends millions to defeat GMO labeling in key state New York
Agricultural, food and beverage companies have spent millions of dollars to defeat legislation in New York state that would require ...
Vermont legislators ‘reckless’ with state funds defending GMO labeling law
On the front page of the May 9, 2014, Bennington Banner, Gov. Peter Shumlin was all smiles holding up a ...
Future of biotechnology, scientific research threatened by pro-organic misinformation campaigns
The organic food market is estimated at $63 billion globally, with more than half of those sales occuring in the United States ...
Filipino scientists forced to bring petition against GM field trial ban to Supreme Court
There has been talk about the impending legal battle concerning a petition filed by scientist-researchers from the University of the Philippines ...
GM debate distracts from common goal of making agriculture more sustainable
In an article published his week in PLOS Biology, Ottoline Leyser argues that the GM debate is distracting us from addressing the real challenges ...
Celebrity chef Tom Colicchio calls for GMO labeling in New York
A consumer goes to the produce aisle in the supermarket and sees five displays of strawberries. The first is labeled ...
Oregon maps GM crop fields to establish system for coexistence
Before residents in southern Oregon overwhelmingly voted to ban genetically modified crops last month, farmers negotiated for months with a ...
United Kingdom could see GM crops in fields next year under new proposal
The European Union Environment Council have voted yes on a proposal that could see GM crops planted in U.K. fields ...
Most responsible, sustainable agricultural system is hybrid of organic, conventional and GMO
Amy Hepworth, an organic farmer in New York’s Hudson Valley, also believes in the importance of soil health and working ...
Audio: What if agriculture didn’t have biotechnology?
Another day, another petition pushing for a ban of biotechnology in a region. The latest that crossed my desk is ...
US grocers sue Vermont over GMO labeling law citing First Amendment
Four organizations filed suit against the state of Vermont for Act 120, which requires food manufacturers to label products that ...
India’s intelligence agency says Greenpeace’s anti-GMO campaign damages economy
India's domestic spy service has accused Greenpeace and other lobby groups of hurting economic progress by campaigning against power projects, ...
Individual European Union states allowed to bar GM crops even if cleared as safe and healthy
The European Union will allow member countries to make their own decisions on growing genetically modified (GM) food in a ...
Proposed anti-GMO bill in Kauai, Hawaii targets agricultural innovation and research
Large agriculture companies and landowners are opposing a bill that would establish “agronomics” as a new and separate real property ...
Label food, but do it right: Scare-based labels hurt everybody
In early May, Vermont governor Peter Shumlin signed a bill into law that requires a label for any foods produced ...
Moving past GMO debate: Monsanto executive, organic farmer and anti-industrialist activist agree on future for agriculture
In the days leading up to a panel discussion on GMOs put on by Climate One, I started getting nervous. I was slated ...
How biotech corn transformed the lives of Filipino farmers
Ryan Lising, 39, has lived all his life in a farming community in Mandani, Magalang, Pampanga, one of seven provinces ...
GM and organic crops need not be separate in food debate to achieve best outcome in feeding world’s hungry
Given its centrality to our existence and lifestyle, it is unsurprising that the different ways in which food can be ...
Oregon now at forefront of national GMO debate
A battle is being waged in Oregon’s grocery stores, wheat and sugar beet fields, restaurant tables and pantry shelves. The long-simmering ...
China cracks down against illegal GM crop testing at corporations and research centers
The continued illegal sale of genetically modified (GM) food in parts of China has prompted the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) ...
Is GM corn leading to overuse of insecticides as pests develop resistance?
Whether the return to pesticide use makes sense, or is simply spurred by a chemical industry marketing campaign, is at ...
Western Australia GM research facility faces safety scrutiny
When the multi-million dollar GM research station was opened in 2011 in Merredin, 300 kilometres east of Perth, it boasted ...
GM crop trials not taking off in India despite last-minute approvals
Despite last-minute clearances given to stalled field trials of genetically modified (GM) crops by former environment minister Veerappa Moily, seed ...
Vermont relying on out-of-state donations to defend GMO labeling bill
Vermont’s effort to require labels on foods made with genetically modified ingredients has garnered lots of out-of-state attention – and ...
