South Korea rejected a shipment of Argentine feed wheat after finding unapproved strains of genetically modified organisms (GMO) in the cargo, the agriculture ministry said on Tuesday.

The authorisation of three genetically modified (GMO) soya beans for food and feed use by the European Commission (EC) has been duly “acknowledged” by Europe’s feed sector bodies, albeit with the added comment that the newly approved items had been in the pending tray since the beginning of 2016.

Health risks of residues from spraying with herbicides not assessed

Sunday, 24 July 2016

According to news agencies, the EU Commissionhas allowed the import of genetically engineered soybeans produced by Bayer and Monsanto. The imported soybeans can be used in food and feed despite unresolved concerns about health risks. These crops can be sprayed with a combination of glyphosate and other herbicides such as dicamba or isoxaflutole. Market authorisation has been issued after massive pressure from industry, which already sold its patented seeds in the US for cultivation and now wants to import the harvest to the EU within the next months. The European Food Safety Authority EFSA only recently stated that the health risks resulting from herbicide residues cannot be properly assessed, and that safety levels cannot be defined since the relevant data are missing.

by Vandana Shiva

A recent report from the National Academy of Science of The United States, titled "Gene Drives on the Horizon: Advancing Science, Navigating Uncertainty, and Aligning Research with Public Values," warns:

“One possible goal of release of a gene-drive modified organism is to cause the extinction of the target species or a drastic reduction in its abundance.”

Gene Drives have been called "mutagenic chain reactions," and are to the biological world what chain reactions are to the nuclear world. The Guardian describes Gene Drives as the "gene bomb."

NEW DELHI: After turning Sikkim into a fully organic state, India is now looking at a "cluster" approach to increase area under chemical-free farming in other states. Many states have already started earmarking exclusive organic farming zones, with Maharashtra leading the pack with 932 exclusive clusters followed by Madhya Pradesh (880), Rajasthan (755), Uttar Pradesh (575), Uttarakhand (550) and Karnataka (545).

One of the biggest concerns about the cultivation of genetically modified crops is the rise of superweeds caused by the overuse of glyphosate, the main ingredient in Monsanto's best-selling Roundup and other pesticides.

So, in an effort to beat back these herbicide-defying weeds, Monsanto and DuPont have agreed to sell an even stronger weed killer to go with their genetically modified seeds.

On 8 July 2016, EU member states will discuss whether or not to approve genetically engineered maize 1507 and Bt11 for cultivation and the re-authorisation of GM maize Mon810 (http://ec.europa.eu/food/plant/docs/sc_modif-genet_20160708_agenda.pdf). All three maize events are producing insecticidal Bt toxins.

However, in the light of new evidence, it has to be concluded that authorisation for the cultivation of genetically engineered maize cannot be issued: As the EU Commission admitted just recently there is an outbreak of teosinte in Spain (http://redandaluzadesemillas.org/IMG/pdf/160607_respuesta_ce_x_carta_conjunta_teosinte.pdf).

This has huge legal, economic and ecological consequences: In 1998, when the cultivation of MON810 was allowed in the EU for the first time, the precondition was that there were no wild relatives to which the transgenes could spread. However, this circumstance changed in 2009 when teosinte was found to be growing in Spanish maize fields as a new alien species. Since then, no effective measures could be identified to prevent teosinte from spreading further. Teosinte is a wild relative of maize and native to Mexico. Crossings between teosinte and maize can enable transgenes from genetically engineered maize to spread and persist in the environment. Once gene flow has occurred it can be very difficult and very costly to remove the plants and control the damage in the environment and for farmers. (www.testbiotech.org/en/node/1676).

This briefing paper presents the status of genetically modified (GM) soya in South Africa. GM Soybean seed owned by Monsanto and genetically engineered to withstand the herbicide glyphosate, accounts for 90% of all soya bean production in South Africa.

Soya is now one of South Africa’s most important crops and has surpassed sunflower as the country’s major oilseed crop. In 2015/16 despite the crippling drought, South African farmers planted a record 687 000 ha of GM soybeans, yielding a harvest of over 1 million tons. It is expected that production will rise 1 million ha within a decade.

The majority of GM soya grown in South Africa is for the animal feed industry, though previous GM testing by the ACB has found GM soya in a variety of food products, including bread, breakfast cereals and soya mince.

The use of glyphosate in South African agriculture has increased dramatically since the introduction of GM crops, and the continued increase in cultivation of GM soya is likely to exacerbate this trend. Should local weed populations start developing resistance to glyphosate, as has happened elsewhere, South Africans can expect the introduction of GM soya varieties tolerant to combinations of more and more toxic chemicals such as 2,4 D and dicamba.

Genetically engineered foods must be clearly labelled on food packages in state starting July 1

A new GMO labelling law in Vermont is sending ripples through the North American food industry.

Starting July 1, processed foods sold in the state that contain genetically engineered ingredients must say so on the label.

Similar laws exist in countries across Europe, but for now, genetically modified organisms don't have to be labelled in the rest of the U.S., or in Canada.

David Zuckerman, an organic farmer and Vermont state senator who pushed for the law, said people in his state want to know where their food comes from. The new law will allow them to decide whether or not they want to buy GMO foods.

"With a labelled product, consumers can make that decision," Zuckerman said.

Press release - June 29, 2016

Brussels – The European Commission has extended a licence for glyphosate, a controversial weedkiller, until the end of 2017, when the European Chemicals Agency is expected to complete an assessment of glyphosate’s effects on human health and the environment.

Commenting on the Commission’s decision, Greenpeace EU food policy director Franziska Achterberg said: “The EU has decided to extend the use of glyphosate without any meaningful restriction, despite WHO warnings that it is a probable cause of cancer. This reckless decision was driven by a Commission that has lost touch with European citizens, quietly backed by many national governments.

The end of 2017 is just around the corner. National and regional governments, and the European Commission, should start preparing a glyphosate exit plan as soon as possible.”