Zambia's test lab nears completion In Zambia 85 percent of the labor force works in agriculture, but this is no breadbasket, nor remotely idyllic. In Zambia, the odds of living past 40 are low. Twenty percent of children are underweight, 32 percent of adults are illiterate, and 42 percent have no access to safe drinking water. The nation's gross domestic product hovers around $3 per day; about $1 per day of that is personal income. Against this backdrop, a $450,000 laboratory for detecting Genefied Modified Mechanisms (GMOs) in Zambia is near completion at the Seed Control and Certification Institute (SCCI) in Lusaka. More†

Organic farming hurts Zimbabwe But how can that be? Food retailers in the US and Europe, and their friends, assure everyone that organic farming produces just as much food as doing it the modern way, and sells for more money, too! The picture is different in Zimbabwe. When you're really, really poor, organic farming is the only method within your means. When a neighboring country starts using modern techniques, and you can't, you're worse than poor. More†

It's official: people have a right to technology. At least in the Philippines, and if it's agricultural biotechnology, according to Dr. Saturnina Halos, chairperson of the Biotech Advisory Team of the Philippine Department of Agriculture. More†

Drought tolerance on the way Drought tolerant maize has long been on the horizon for researchers around the world. Funds for public research are tight, and the costs of regulatory compliance are astronomical. The result: Monsanto and BASF have discovered a naturally-occurring gene that can help maize plants combat drought conditions and confer yield stability during periods of inadequate water supplies. And the farmers who need this technology most -- mainly in drought-stricken regions of Africa -- won't get to use it. More†

India to wait 8 years for GM rice In India, field trials of GM drought-tolerant rice are under way, and Dr, Charudatta Digambarrao Mayee, chairman, Agricultural Scientists Recruitment Board (ASRB). More†