Brazil approves Dupont/Dow GM maize Brazil's biosafety regulator CTNBio has approved commercial cultivation of GM maize jointly developed by DuPont and Dow. It must still be approved by Brazil's Agriculture Ministry before it can be planted. More†

Italy approves GM fruit, vegetable trials After a hiatus of ten years, Italy has approved the resumption of biotech field trials -- sort of. Protocols for nine crops were approved but leave implementing regulations up to the regions - many of which have declared themselves to be GMO free.  More†

Development

GM maize field trials in Cuba GM maize developed by Cuban scientists is currently in the farm trial phase in five different provinces of that island nation. The Cuban project emerged in 2000 with the goal of developing corn resistant to the principal plague for this type of gramineae on the island (moths) and a certain type of herbicide. A team from the plant division at CIGB and specialists from the Liliana Dimitrova Horticulture Research Institute have worked on the project since it began. More†

Tech for Kenya A new project is underway to transfer technology to Kenya that might not draw the wrath of Greenpeace. More†

Potpourri

Low radiocarbon food A company called Radiocarb Genetics is announcing success in its program to develop foods with "significantly lower levels of harmful radioactive carbon-14 than normally found in food." The supposed benefit is that "Infants and children nourished with safer, low radiocarbon LifeBlocks(TM) foods will suffer tens of billions fewer genetic damage events over their lifetime. More†