Brit supermarkts 'too hasty' in rejecting GM Speaking in a panel debate after delivering the City Food Lecture in London, Tesco chief executive Sir Terry Leahy has admitted UK supermarkets may have made the decision to reject GM products too hastily and signalled Tesco is willing to re-open the debate. "It may have been a failure of us all to stand by the science", he said. More†

France defends GM ban According to French officials, GM maize is safe to eat -- but that's beside the point. According to Environment Minister Jean-Louis Borloo, the real point is whether its cultivation could create wider environmental problems, notably contaminating other crops. More†

Business

Australia: no problems with GM feed According to a report by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE), Australian production of GM canola has had almost no impact on the market. "The increasing adoption of GM crops has led to a greater presence in stockfeed mixes both here and overseas," said Phillip Glyde, Executive Director, ABARE. More†

Dow AgroSciences to collaborate with China National Rice Research Institute (CNRRI) Dow AgroSciences, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company, and CNRRI, of Hangzhou, China, have announced that they have entered into a research agreement to combine Dow AgroSciences' platform of traits and technologies with CNRRI's leading rice germplasm. More†

Dow AgroSciences up for sale? During a February 3 conference call with analysts, in which Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris said the company is working with investment banks to evaluate potential buyers for 12 major assets. At the same time, Dow Chemical is facing a cash crunch, due in part to a downturn in the worldwide economy. While accounting for less than 8% of parent Dow Chemical's sales, revenue for the AgroSciences unit in 2008 rose 20%, to $4.5 billion, and operating profit was up 36%. This has led the agriculture industry to speculate that a sale of DowAgro would be attractive. More†

Korean processors block GM maize Maize processors in South Korea will not import genetically modified maize for food use this year after grain prices fell and as consumers shun gene-modified foods, according to reports.  More†

Syngenta to collaborate with China's Anhui Academy Syngenta has announced an eight-year research collaboration with Anhui Rice Research Institute (ARRI) of Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences in China. The collaboration program is centered around conducting laboratory and field tests of novel gene functions and will focus on drought tolerance and nitrogen utilization optimization in key crops such as maize and soybean. More†

Legal

European Court says: no secret field locations The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled that European Union governments have no right to restrict public information about the location of field trials of genetically modified crops. The ruling follows a campaign waged against his local authorities for nearly five years by Pierre Azelvandre, who lives in the Alsace commune of Sausheim in eastern France. More†

German beekeeper loses complaint against GM field trials In Kitzingen, Germany, a beekeeper has lost his complaint against the cultivation of GM maize in the area near his operations. He wanted government agencies to move the field trials 800 meters away from his bees. More†

Swiss go-ahead on field trials Switzerland's Federal Environment Office says that tests of GM maize, currently underway in Zurich, may continued, with the office satisfied that the tests are being conducted safely. However, a number of changes must be introduced and researchers have been instructed to lay a protection net over test fields, to stop birds feeding on seeds and subsequent crops. They've also been told to use weedkiller extensively, to remove traces of last year's GMOs. More†

USFDA clears animal-produced drug The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared the first medicine made from genetically engineered animals. The drug is called ATryn and belongs to a Massachusetts biotechnology company, GTC Biotherapeutics. It was obtained by altering the genes of goats so they would produce milk rich in antithrombin, a protein that in humans acts as a natural blood thinner. More†

Sci/Tech

Genes to improve wheat frost tolerance With funding from USDA's Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES), scientists in California have identified the genes in wheat that are responsible for the plant's tolerance to freezing temperatures.  This discovery may lead to improved crop production. More†

New method to detect GMOs The most common method of GMO detection is based upon the amplification of GMO-specific DNA amplicons using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Scientists have successfully applied the loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) method to amplify GMO-related DNA sequences, 'internal' commonly-used motifs for controlling transgene expression and event-specific (plant-transgene) junctions. More†

Development

India's new platform for transgenic crops The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) and the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India, have together launched the project for establishing a Platform for Translational Research on Transgenic Crops (PTTC). More†

Kenya signs biosafety law Kenya's President Mwai Kibaki has signed into law the biosafety Bill which has been pending since last December when Parliament passed it after years of discussions. The presidential action now allows regulatory authorities to draw up regulations that would be used to facilitate implementation of the Biosafety Act. More†