GeneWatch UK has submitted a response to the European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA's) consultation on its "Draft scientific opinion on new developments in biotechnology applied to animals: an assessment of the adequacy and sufficiency of current EFSA guidance for animal risk assessment". The "new developments in biotechnology" are the genetic engineering technologies of synthetic biology (synbio) and new genomic techniques (NGTs), such as CRISPR-Cas and other types of gene editing. Somewhat predictably, EFSA found "no new potential hazards, and thus, no new risks to humans, animals, or the environment are anticipated" from the use of these techniques in animals, beyond those posed by conventional breeding and older gene technologies such as random mutagenesis. GeneWatch UK says it is "concerned that the draft guidance attempts to significantly weaken the regulatory oversight of genetically modified (GM) animals in the EU, and thus fails to protect human and animal health, the environment, and animal welfare". GMWatch

 

 

Testbiotech has published a report on the application of new genetic engineering (or new genomic techniques, NGTs) in animals used for the production of food. The special focus of this report is on the protection of animals, health and the environment. The report is a contribution to ongoing discussions in regard to the future regulation and risk assessment of "new GM" animals. Testbiotech says: "New genetic engineering can be used to bring about genetic changes in vertebrates that go beyond what is currently possible, or might be expected, from applying conventional breeding methods. This technical potential of NGTs also raises crucial questions about specific risks affecting areas such as animal welfare, animal health, animal breeding, the environment and consumer protection... Inadequate regulation of NGT animals will result in an increase in the number of animal experiments, animal losses and animal suffering, all driven by questionable interests and prospects in financial gain." See GMWatch's X thread here. GMWatch

 

 

In a major win for small-scale food producers and peasant farmers in Kenya, “the Kenya Court of Appeal blocked the Kenyan government from importing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) into the country”, according to the Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA) — an alliance of organisations and movements across the continent advocating for agroecology and food sovereignty. “We celebrate this ruling as a major victory for small-scale farmers across Kenya,” said David Otieno, a small-scale farmer and member of the Kenyan Peasants League, a social movement consisting of consumers, farmers, pastoralists, and fishers rallying against the multinational corporate takeover of food systems in Kenya. Otieno added: “GMOs are not the solution to food insecurity in our country. Instead, they deepen dependency on multinational agribusinesses, threaten biodiversity, and compromise farmers’ ability to control their food systems.” Beyond Pesticides

 

 

The African maize stem borer, Busseola fusca, is one of the most important pests of maize in Africa. A new scientific paper reports that GM Bt Cry1Ab maize was planted commercially in South Africa for 6 years since 1998-1999 before field resistance of B. fusca was first reported. Over time, this was followed by reports of Cry1Ab-resistant B. fusca populations throughout the maize production region and the conclusion that it evolved practical resistance to Cry1Ab maize. To mitigate the problem with Cry1Ab resistance in South Africa, MON 89034 maize, which contains two Bt proteins (Cry1A.105 and Cry2Ab2) was commercialised in 2011. However, growers in localised areas in the KwaZulu-Natal province and Mpumalanga province reported the presence of B. fusca infestations in MON 89034 maize in 2017 and 2023, respectively. GMWatch

 

 

An article for US News reports, "Bayer... welcomed a new law about to be passed in the US state of Georgia to better protect the maker of crop protection chemicals against glyphosate litigation." GMWatch commented on X: "Of course it does – it wrote it and paid for it through its massive lobby spend. And only it and its fellow pesticide pushers stand to benefit, while its many victims can go hang." @GMWatch comment on article for US News

 

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