EU environment experts failed today to agree on whether to authorise growing of a genetically modified potatoe. The EU regulatory committee has not reached a qualified majority. The decision therefore passes to the Council of Ministers.

Britain's farm and environment ministry said on Friday it had given the go-ahead for research trials on disease resistant genetically modified potatoes.

German chemicals group BASF will be allowed to hold trials on two sites in England, starting next year. The GMO potatoes, which have been developed to be resistant to potato blight, will not be used for food or animal feed.

Russia agreed to maintain an interim approval and registration system for products of modern biotechnology that is science-based, transparent, predictable and consistent with the WTO Agreement.

Further Russia agreed to register products covered by all pending applications that have received a favorable science-based risk assessment by November 15, 2006. Russia and the United States agreed to hold annual consultations on the status of applications for re-registration of products whose registrations have expired during that year and to establish an ongoing bilateral consultative mechanism to discuss issues of regulatory development in the area of agricultural biotechnology.

The World Trade Organization on Tuesday ruled that European countries broke international trade regulations by preventing imports of genetically modified foods. Argentina, Canada and the United States - which brought the dispute to the WTO - said the decision proves there was no scientific evidence to justify the ban. The three urged the 25-nation European Union to immediately bring into compliance its laws on genetically modified organisms, or GMOs.

Europe's food safety authority has issued draft guidance for the renewal of authorisations of existing genetically modified products lawfully placed on the market. The guidance, from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), aims to assist applicants in the preparation and presentation of applications for renewal of authorisation of existing products according to articles 11 and 23 of regulation (EC) 1829/2003 on genetically modified food and feed.

The Brazilian environmental institute Ibama reports from 2000 - 2004 the domestic consumption of glyphosates has increased by 95% while the soybeans planted area rose 71%, showing the introduction of genetic modified soybeans Roundup Ready seeds from Monsanto, led to a larger use of agrochemicals.

Rio Grande do Sul, which hosts most of the transgenic soybeans agriculture shows a rate of 162% on glyphosate consumption and 38% in the soybeans planted area. Rio Grande shows what would happen in other states with the uses of genetic modified seeds. There soybean farmers have increased by 106% the consumption of herbicides from 9,800 to 20,200 m tons (2000 - 2004) of which 19,300 m tons of glyphosates used in an area of4.1 mil ha of soybeans plantations. Consequences of the massive use of herbicides are still to be seen, but researchers from Embrapa already noticed the growing resistance of plagues to glyphosates.

[Source: Valor Economico]

The EU's Committee of the Regions opinion on the Commissions Report on national measures concerning the coexistence of genetically modified crops with conventional and organic farming - COM(2006) 104 final - will be adopted in plenary on December 6th. It calls for zero tolerance of GMOs in conventional seeds, for extended rights of the regional governments on co-existence measures and doubts that co-existence will actually be feasible in many cases. The draft is now available in many languages (agenda point 6).

The pending approval for commercial release of a genetically modified potatoe, which has been developed by Amylogene, Sweden, now taken over by BASF, Germany, would be the first EU approval for cultivation of a GMO since 1998.

Brazil's biosafety commission, CTNBio, was unable to reach a consensus Wednesday regarding technical studies on transgenic cotton and corn seeds from Bayer CropScience, Monsanto (MON) and Syngenta Seeds (SYT), a CTNBio spokeswoman said Thursday. CTNBio meets monthly and is responsible for accepting field tests on genetically modified crops. The group's scientists conduct independent studies and analysis on whether the biotech product is harmful to the environment or human consumption. Final commercial approval depends on political and economic decisions made by a consensus of various government departments.

The European Union has now ruled that all long grain rice imports from the United States must now be tested for illegal genetically modified material before they are allowed to enter Europe.