via livinggreenmag.com
Its first attempt to develop genetically engineered grass ended disastrously for the Scotts Miracle-Gro Company. The grass escaped into the wild from test plots in Oregon in 2003, dooming the chances that the government would approve the product for commercial use.
Yet Scotts is once again developing genetically modified grass that would need less mowing, be a deeper green and be resistant to damage from the popular weedkiller Roundup. But this time the grass will not need federal approval before it can be field-tested and marketed.
Scotts and several other companies are developing genetically modified crops using techniques that either are outside the jurisdiction of the Agriculture Department or use new methods — like “genome editing” — that were not envisioned when the regulations were created.
The department has said, for example, that it has no authority over a new herbicide-resistant canola, a corn that would create less pollution from livestock waste, switch grass tailored for biofuel production, and even an ornamental plant that glows in the dark.
The trend alarms critics of biotech crops, who say genetic modification can have unintended effects, regardless of the process.
“They are using a technical loophole so that what are clearly genetically engineered crops and organisms are escaping regulation,” said Michael Hansen, a senior scientist at Consumers Union. He said the grass “can have all sorts of ecological impact and no one is required to look at it.”
Even some people who say the crops are safe and the regulations overly burdensome have expressed concern that because some crops can be left unregulated, the whole oversight process is confusing and illogical, in some cases doing more harm than good.
Read more: Scientists Alter Crops With Techniques Outside Regulators’ Scope
The Latest on: Genetically modified crops
via Google News
The Latest on: Genetically modified crops
- Kenyan Farmers urge Government to Adopt Bt maizeon February 26, 2021 at 4:00 pm
By Verenardo MeemeImpressed by the high yields realized in open field trials, Kenyan farmers are urging their government to speed up the process of allowing them to access genetically modified Bt ...
- FSSAI's GMO threshold for imported food crops unacceptably high: Coalition for GM-free Indiaon February 26, 2021 at 11:03 am
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)'s recent order which set the tolerance limit of genetically modified organisms (GMO) in food crops imported into India as 1 per cent has ...
- Mexico to Ban Glyphosate, GM Cornon February 24, 2021 at 12:52 pm
Mexican president Andrés Manuel López Obrador quietly rocked the agribusiness world with his New Year’s Eve decree to phase out use of the herbicide glyphosate and the cultivation of genetically ...
- Fact check: Video takes Bill Gates’ comments about GMO crops out of contexton February 23, 2021 at 6:18 pm
Social media users have shared misleading videos of Microsoft co-founder turned philanthropist Bill Gates. An edited video with the caption ‘the biggest unexpected truth bomb ever on live TV’ shows ...
- Glyphosate Market Insights with Key Company Profiles – Forecast to 2031on February 23, 2021 at 1:52 am
No till Farming to Boost Glyphosate Market amid Cancer Concerns Leading manufacturers of glyphosate are continuing to reiterate the environment friendly attributes of glyphosate They opine that the ...
- Study: GM Crops could Support Food Security in Africaon February 22, 2021 at 4:00 pm
By Joseph MainaGenetically modified (GM) maize has produced higher yields than conventional hybrid varieties in South Africa, highlighting the technology’s potential to support food security in the ...
- Mexico pressing ahead with GMO corn, glyphosate bans, says key officialon February 19, 2021 at 10:32 am
Mexico is sticking to a plan to stop importing genetically modified corn and a ban on a widely used herbicide, a senior official told Reuters, doubling down on a policy that has pleased green ...
- Co-op joins war on 'Frankenfood': Store becomes first British supermarket to reject GM crops and animals without strict assessmentson February 18, 2021 at 5:41 pm
The Co-op is the first UK supermarket to reject genetically modified food crops and animals without strict assessment and labels. It also backed the #NotInMySupermarket campaign ...
- Crops developed with gene editing losing the info waron February 18, 2021 at 12:02 pm
Canadians don’t know much, or think much, about gene-edited crops. But when asked about the technology, one phrase pops up: genetically modified ...
- China to promote R&D in agricultural genetically modified organismson February 18, 2021 at 4:05 am
China will support innovative research and development (R&D) of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), according to a document published by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs on Thursday, ...
via Bing News
