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.
Disease-resistant tomatoes fight lethal pests
The following is an excerpt. In the battle against thrips, Cornell breeder Martha Mutschler-Chu has developed a new weapon: a ...
Ignore hysteria over new ‘Monsanto’ bill
The following is an excerpt. If you have read anything about the “Monsanto Protection Act,” chances are what you have ...
Africa: Subsidies and GM crops back on food policy menu
The following is an excerpt. Food has become expensive and seems set to stay that way, so growing more of ...
Food politics creates rift in panel on labeling
The following is an excerpt. The politics of genetically modified food has created a rift in a policy-setting committee of ...
GMO fears do not ‘translate to the average consumer’
The following is an excerpt. Although many farmers took up placards this week to protest the possible introduction of genetically ...
Could wheat be made more like maize?
The following is an excerpt. Wheat yields could potentially double as scientists seek to make the crop's efficiency of photosynthesis ...
Pursue practical food labels
The following is an excerpt. Is a truce in the long war over genetically modified (GM) food in the works? ...
GM apple wins award
The following is an excerpt. SUMMERLAND, B.C. — Okanagan Specialty Fruits of Summerland will receive an award from BIOTECanada for ...
Genetic modification: Time for a more nuanced debate
The following is an excerpt. What is a person with a conscience to think about the fraught and complex issue of ...
DSM and Monsanto to commercialize soybean oil rich in omega-3 fatty acids
The following is an excerpt. Monsanto has joined forces with DSM to commercialize a genetically engineered soybean oil rich in ...
Why “playing God” could help the human race
The following is an excerpt. Despite the frequently encountered argument that scientists are ‘playing God’ with nature, the pros of ...
Tanzania considers applying biotechnology in cotton farming
The following is an excerpt. The government recognises the potential of modern biotechnology in reviving the country's cotton industry, the ...
GMO rider: “Monsanto protection” or “farmer sustainability”?
The following is an excerpt. The biotech industry rejoiced along with biotech seed companies and farmers supportive of genetically modified ...
GM protesters’ newest tactic: “Soup’s on!”
The following is an excerpt. WASHINGTON -- When authorities got wind of a demonstration planned for Monday outside the Food ...
Genetic ‘kill switch’ eradicates female silkworms for a better crop
The following is an excerpt. The technology used to kill off the female mosquitoes that spread tropical diseases has been ...
Zealots froth over biotechnology
The following is an excerpt. Overheard from an Oregon legislator as he exited a committee meeting at the Capitol: "Are ...
An NYU panel debate on GMO labeling
The following is an edited excerpt. Last Thursday, the NYU Global Center for Academic & Spiritual Life, in conjunction with GMO ...
Engineered apples near approval
The following is an excerpt. Any parent will tell you, it’s hard to get a kid to eat an apple that’s ...
Monsanto, steaks, and chefs: Intellectual property and food
The following is an excerpt. The big problem with Monsanto is its reliance on intellectual property. Rather than on innovation, the ...
GM: Time for a more nuanced debate
The following is an edited excerpt. What is a person with a conscience to think about the fraught and complex ...
GMO scientist Séralini backs GMO awareness and labeling
Last year the French scientist Gilles-Eric Séralini published a study linking GMO foods and tumors in rats. The study has since ...
Letter to the editor: ‘Monsanto Protection Act’ is at root of ‘Farmer Assurance Provision’
The following is an excerpt. I was surprised to read Rekha Basu’s column (“Deception Undermines Democracy,” April 5) and learn that she ...
Response to Mark Bittman on the “biotech rider”
The following is an excerpt. Bittman continues writes misleading claims in an attempt to distract readers from what the issue ...
GMO labeling is better if voluntary
The following is an excerpt. Norwich, Conn. — The Legislature’s Public Health Committee this week gave favorable approval to a ...
Connecticut: Advocates push for GMO labeling law
The following is an excerpt. A public forum with state legislators and advocates for the labeling of foods containing Genetically ...
GMO pickle claim leaves you scratching your head
[UPDATE, 23 April 2013 -- The post excerpted here is satire. Our apologies for any confusion. You can see a ...
Food labels don’t tell what’s in the genes
The following is an excerpt. Josephine Burriesci already reads food labels and tries to avoid ingredients she can’t pronounce. But ...
