Europe
Brexit could free UK farmers from Europe’s stringent GMO regulations
Like most United Kingdom citizens, English farmer Andrew Osmond lives with a certain sense of uncertainty brought on by Brexit ...
Biotech experts push ‘science-based review’ of European court’s ruling on gene-edited plants
A recent ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) classifies genome-edited plants as genetically modified organisms ...
Viewpoint: When it comes to CRISPR crop regulations, Europe must trust its biotech experts
The latest ruling by the European Court of Justice requires that crops created using gene-editing techniques such as CRISPR must ...
Europe’s restrictions on gene-edited crops may cause ‘exodus’ of biotech scientists
Plant scientists have reacted with shock, even anger, to the July decision by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) on gene editing ...
Farmers say Europe’s neonicotinoid pesticide bans put their crops at risk
In April [2018], the EU introduced a ban on outdoor use of three neonicotinoids – clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam – ...
Viewpoint: Want to slash pesticide use? Stop trying to ban GMOs
On Aug. 20, I gave a speech in Dublin, Ireland, at the International Association for Plant Biotechnology Congress .... where ...
CRISPR is poised to revolutionize biotech crops if politics doesn’t block it
Back in 2016, I wrote a feature story for Florida Grower magazine on the potential of CRISPR/Cas9 to improve agricultural productivity and maybe even ...
New hybrid sugar beet could boost Europe’s sugar industry
Plant biotechnologists from the Ryan Institute at NUI Galway [Ireland] have identified genetic breeding strategies to develop bigger and better ...
What is a GMO? That’s a question with many answers
Nothing seems to upset those arguing about GMOs more than debating the definition of the term “GMO” itself. Most proponents ...
UK could retain Europe’s strict regulations on GMO crops following Brexit
In a position paper, [published August 23rd] the government said that EU GMO rules would continue to apply in the U.K ...
Farmers consider a world without glyphosate—and it’s less than ideal
"More glufosinate, maybe more paraquat." "I would have to find a different burn down chemical, likely paraquat. Would use more ...
Europe’s decision to reject gene edited crops signals it is losing its commitment to sustainable agriculture
At the same time as Swedish agriculture is affected by the worst drought in recent memory, the European Court of ...
Roundup trial: California jury’s glyphosate verdict spurs effort to ban the herbicide in Europe
A landmark court ruling in the U.S. holding Monsanto liable for causing cancer through its glyphosate-based weedkiller is adding fuel ...
Video: Fear of biotech remains high, but GMOs are revolutionizing farming worldwide
It's no secret that many consumers remain fearful of agricultural biotechnology. More than half of Europe's citizens, for instance, believe ...
Viewpoint: Greenpeace and ‘the awful reality of anti-science activism’
The Austrian research portal "Addendum" released a bombshell video regarding the facts, figures, and positions regarding GMO foods. In this ...
EU court ruling limiting gene editing ironically underscores safety of modified crops
A European Union court [July 25th] issued a new decision about GMOs. Disappointingly, this decision is likely to further confuse rather than ...
Chemical giant Bayer challenging Europe’s neonicotinoids ban
Bayer will appeal...the recent ruling of the General Court of the European Union (EU) to ban neonicotinoids. [T]he German multinational pharmaceutical company ...
Viewpoint: Europe may miss CRISPR gene-editing revolution in agriculture, but that won’t stop its progress
Had gene-editing technologies such as CRISPR-Cas9 been exempt from the same stringent guidelines in place for conventional genetic technology, it would have ...
Viewpoint: By ‘shutting the door’ on crop gene editing, Europe shows its biotech regulations deeply flawed
The European Court of Justice has made an important ruling on genetically modified crops. Since 2003, new crop varieties produced by ...
Science setback? What’s next now that European court rules gene-edited crops are GMOs?
With the European court ruling that CRISPR crops and other gene-edited foods must be treated as classic transgenic GMOs, scientists worry ...
European court appears poised to rule that gene edited crops should not be regulated as GMOs
Gene editing in agriculture takes centre stage [July 25th] when Europe’s highest court rules in a case that could determine ...
Viewpoint: EU’s neonicotinoid ban is a ‘scientific fraud’ and won’t protect bees
Five years after the European Union imposed a temporary ban on neonicotinoid pesticides, an “experts committee” of the member states ...
Viewpoint: French media’s ‘fake news’ on glyphosate herbicide endangers science in Europe
In Europe, technical matters which should be science-based, such as the authorization of marketing for chemicals or genetically engineered plants, ...
Viewpoint: European organic industry’s obsession with ‘natural’ threatens CRISPR innovations and hurts the environment
What is nature? What is natural? Philosophers have been arguing about this since antiquity. Supporters of organic farming seem to ...
Europe missed out on GMO biotech revolution. What’s going to happen with gene editing?
As a plant geneticist in Europe, I must carefully pick my way through some of the most onerous constraints to ...
Viewpoint: How European activists lobby for a glyphosate ban despite findings of its safety
In January, the European Parliament announced that it will set up a Special Committee on the Union’s authorization procedure for ...
French scientist calls for inquiry into IARC’s ‘misbehavior’ on glyphosate cancer study
Following revelations that IARC withheld data showing the herbicide glyphosate does not cause cancer, French molecular geneticist Marcel Kuntz calls ...