May 2014
ISB News Report - May 2014
http://www.isb.vt.edu/news/2014/May14.pdf
Table of Contents
REGULATORY NEWS
While Popularity Eludes GE Foods, AgBiotech Companies Shift Tactics
Phillip Jones
Monsanto announced in January that the company is progressing on the development of glyphosate-tolerant wheat. A month later, Pioneer Hi-Bred's GE corn, TC1507, earned approval in the European Union. Around the same time, the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications reported that more farmers than ever are choosing to grow GE crops. Is this the golden age for GE crops? Have people embraced the idea that their food contains ingredients from GE crops? Not by a long shot.
The Potential Impacts of Mandatory Labeling for Genetically Engineered Food in the United States
CAST Issue Paper 54, April 2014
Although genetically engineered (GE) products are used around the world, their use in food products has become a contentious issue for some consumers. A key point in the resulting debate centers on proposals regarding the mandatory labeling of GE food. This publication examines arguments for and against labels, the costs involved with labeling, and experiences in countries that use mandatory labeling. The authors start from the premise that hundreds of independent studies have determined that foods made using GE ingredients are safe. They gather factual information to produce a peer-reviewed publication that clarifies the potential impacts of mandatory labeling.
RISK ASSESSMENT NEWS
GM Crop Use Continues to Benefit the Environment and Farmers
PG Economics Limited; www.pgeconomics.co.uk
Press release: 6 May 2014: Dorchester, UK
Crop biotechnology continues to provide major environmental benefits and allow farmers to grow more, using fewer resources. A majority of these benefits are in developing countries. 'In the 17th year of widespread adoption, crops developed through genetic modification delivered more environmentally friendly farming practices while providing clear improvements to farmer productivity and income' said Graham Brookes, director of PG Economics, co-author of the report. 'Half of the farm income gains and the majority of the environmental gains associated with changes in pesticide use and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions occurred in developing countries'
PLANT RESEARCH NEWS
Enhancing Alkali Stress Tolerance in Tomato Plants Using SAMS Genes: Outcomes, Problems and Perspectives
Biao Gong and Qinghua Shi
Abiotic stresses such as salinity, drought, and alkalinity limit crop productivity worldwide. Plants' adaptation to environmental stresses usually depends on the activation/cascades of molecular networks involving stress perception, signal transduction, and the expression of specific stress-related genes and metabolites. Consequently, engineering genes that protect and maintain the function and structure of cellular components can enhance tolerance to stress. Our limited knowledge of stress-associated metabolism remains a major gap in our understanding; therefore, comprehensive profiling of stress-associated metabolites is most relevant to the successful molecular breeding of stress-tolerant crop plants.
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