Research on GM wheat could improve yields and drought tolerance

The New York Times reports that GM research by private companies could lead to drought-tolerant and high-yield genetically modified wheat. Research focuses on “strengthening the rooting structure of wheat, enhancing the intake of water, increasing the plant’s biomass and facilitating CO2 absorption.” Read more.

Increasing number of African countries conducting GM crop trials

According to Reuters, more African countries are likely to start growing genetically modified crops. Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Malawi, Mali, Zimbabwe, Nigeria and Ghana are conducting research and field trials of GM crops such as rice, wheat and sorghum, which may lead to their adoption. Ephraim Mukisira, a director at the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute, said, “We should rely on biotechnology to prevent further losses in yields and performance of crops. We need to expedite scientific methods that reduce time needed to develop new crop varieties.” Read more.

Forbes blog: Regulation of GM crops hurts agricultural trade

In a Forbes blog, Dr. Henry Miller, founding director of the Office of Biotechnology at the FDA and current fellow at the Hoover Institution, says that “discriminatory” government regulations of genetically modified crops around the world have unintended economic consequences, such as disrupting billions of dollars of agricultural trade in export markets. 

“The best and most definitive solution of all would be for the harmonization of regulatory approaches in order to eliminate the existing discrimination against and excessive regulation of innocuous genetically engineered plants.” Read more.

The Atlantic: Concerns about GM alfalfa contamination not backed by data

According to an article in The Atlantic, media reports that are critical of the USDA’s recent decision to deregulate genetically modified alfalfa neglect to provide supporting data.  Author and food columnist James McWilliams says, “As I encountered one condemnatory article after another regarding Tom Vilsack’s choice to deregulate GM alfalfa, I kept wondering what I often wonder when grappling with an agricultural controversy: where’s the data?”

 Dr. Dan Putnam, a forage expert at UC-Davis, conducted extensive research finding that the chances of cross-contamination from Roundup Ready alfalfa seed are nominal. “With a contamination possibility that’s less than 1 percent, we are not looking at a scenario in which GM alfalfa is going to overtake its organic counterpart,” Mr. McWilliams says citing Putnam’s study.  Read more.

Sugar growers and sweetener users support biotech sugar beet seed

A National Journal article by prize-winning agricultural journalist Jerry Hagstrom points out that support for genetically modified seeds has created a rare source of agreement for sugar growers and sweetener users. When the two interest groups gathered this week for their annual International Sweetener Colloquium in San Diego, rather than clash on the usual hot topic of sugar prices, they found common ground over concerns that federal district court rulings on genetically engineered sugar beet seed have caused uncertainty about the American sugar supply.

In a recent letter to the USDA, the Federal Sweetener Association said the U.S. economy would be negatively impacted if growers could not plant genetically engineered beets. “The lack of alternative strategies for securing adequate supplies would create shortages, place large numbers of manufacturing jobs at risk, drive some already-struggling small businesses into bankruptcy, and raise consumer prices,” the association of candy companies and other industrial consumers of sweeteners said. Read more.

GM Prairie Grass produces cheaper, more abundant ethanol, Bloomberg reports

According to Bloomberg, research shows that genetically modified prairie grass, called switchgrass, could one day provide a cheaper biofuel, and the Department of Energy says it has the potential to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil. The authors of a research report from the National Academy of Sciences indicate that bioengineered switchgrass can produce ethanol more efficiently and may also help with the production of other newly emerging fuels made from the cellulose in plants. Read more.

GM crops necessary to improve ag productivity

As part of the New York Times online series “Is the World Producing Enough Food?”, Michael J. Roberts, assistant professor of agricultural and resource economics at North Carolina State University, says that genetically modified crops are important for agricultural productivity.

 “The greatest hopes against truly catastrophic declines in crop production are a possible boost from CO2 fertilization and improved productivity through breeding or genetically modified crops.” Dr. Roberts discusses the need for improved productivity to meet the demands of a growing world population and increasingly high food community prices. Read more.

 GMO Research aims to prevent spread of banana disease

According to an article in The New Yorker magazine, GMO research aims to prevent the spread of a soil-borne disease, called Tropical Race Four, that threatens to wipe out a widely exported and commonly sold variety of banana called Cavendish. Robert Borsato, a fruit farmer in Australia who, like others, has witnessed the tens of millions of dollars’ worth of damage in lost jobs and revenue caused by Tropical Race Four, said, “The only way to keep going is to breed a disease-resistant variety, one with commercial potential.” A team led by James Dale of Queensland University of Technology in Australia is working on genetically modified Cavendish. Read more. 

Secretary Vilsack proposes co-existence for biotech alfalfa, Reuters reports

USDA Secretary Vilsack addresses farm groups

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack encouraged the largest U.S. farm group to find a way for traditional and genetically modified crops to co-exist, Reuters reports. “Every farmer ought to be able to do what he or she wants to do on their land, so we are going to continue to have that conversation,” Vilsack said at the annual meeting of the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF). His proposed solution addressed the USDA’s deliberation between total deregulation and partial deregulation with isolation standards for biotech alfalfa. The article points out that Secretary Vilsack has acknowledged that the biotech alfalfa is safe. Read more.

Unproven claims against GM products similar to opposition to MMR vaccine, FT says

 A Financial Times article compares previous opposition to the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine (MMR) and current opposition to GM products to show that opponents’ arguments in both cases are unsubstantiated by peer-reviewed scientific research. Falsified information about the health hazards of MMR was later discredited only after causing considerable damage from a measles epidemic. The article points out that while the food debate raises different issues, independent research and food safety authorities in the EU have similarly reviewed opposing arguments to find, “Organic food does no harm. But then neither, it seems, does non-organic food.” Read More.

GM Seeds Raise Incomes and Increase Yields in Africa

An article by Voice of America discusses studies showing that genetically modified crops help Africa to overcome poverty and hunger. It points out that in the book, The New Harvest: Agricultural Innovation in Africa, Harvard University Professor Calestous Juma “proposes that biotech seeds could dramatically increase yield and raise incomes.” Juma joins other genetic engineering proponents like Margaret Karembu, Director of the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Application’s AgriCenter (ISAAA) in Nairobi, who finds that biotech agriculture reduces harmful insecticides, increases yields and raises incomes in countries like South Africa and Burkina Faso.

Author Voices Benefits of Biotechnology on Fox News GM Food Debate

 In a Fox News interview with John Stossel, Gregory Conko, co-author of The Frankenfood Myth, says that modern biotechnology “allows for much safer food.” Mr. Conko points out that “if you’ve eaten food in, say, over the last ten thousand years, you’ve eaten something that farmers or plant breeders have intentionally modified at the genetic level.” He explains that ag technology makes it possible to be more precise by identifying “the changes that are made in the genetic structure of an organism.” 

Former USDA Chief Scientist Recommends GM Crops for President’s Plan

According to Scientific American, former U.S. Department of Agriculture Chief Scientist and Undersecretary for Research, Education and Economics Gale A. Buchanan highly recommends that President Obama incorporate genetically modified crops into his plans to improve global energy productivity and food security. In the article, Buchanan states that “any ‘real, revolutionary’ impact” of the president’s so-called Evergreen Revolution depends on taking advantage of the benefits of GM crops. “The world has got to accept genetically modified plants because not to is to fail to acknowledge one of the most important discoveries of the 21st century,” Buchanan said.

Genetically modified crops reached a significant milestone this week and a new third-party study clearly demonstrates the benefits of genetically modified drought-tolerant corn for African farmers and consumers.

1 billion hectares of biotech crops planted

This week agricultural biotechnology marked an important milestone: farmers around the world have planted more than 1 billion hectares of GM crops since they were introduced in 1996. This is a huge accomplishment (there are 2.47 acres in a hectare) and demonstrates that farmers globally are recognizing and taking advantage of the benefits made possible through high-yielding GM crops. Full story. 

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