Information about genetically modified crops, genetic engineering within the food industry, and community debates over the environmental and health concerns associated with genetic modification in agriculture.
KANSAS CITY (Reuters) - The rapid adoption by U.S. farmers of genetically engineered corn, soybeans and cotton has promoted increased use of pesticides, an epidemic of herbicide-resistant weeds and more chemical residues in foods, according to a report issued Tuesday by health and environmental protection groups. The groups said research showed that herbicide use grew by 383 million pounds from 1996 to 2008, with 46 percent of the total increase occurring in 2007 and 2008. The report was... Read Full Story
In 1982 entry, corrects reference to Monsanto and Times Beach controversy (Reuters) - Over its 108-year history, Monsanto Co, the world's largest seed company, has evolved from primarily an industrial chemical concern into a pure agricultural products company. Following is a timeline of the St. Louis, Missouri-based company's history. * 1901 - Original Monsanto founded as a maker of saccharine by John F. Queeny and named after his wife, Olga Monsanto Queeny. * 1920s and 1930s - Manufacturers... Read Full Story
In 1992, the United States (US) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the first genetically engineered food – Calgene’s Flavr Savr Tomato – for sale and marketing in the United States. Encouraged by a favorable US regulatory system and the lack of serious domestic political challenge, US scientists have subsequently created, farmers have grown, and companies have marketed a wide range of genetically modified (GM) foods and crops. By the end of the 1990s, in “the most rapid adoption of... Read Full Story
LONDON (Reuters) - The world needs genetically modified crops both to increase food yields and minimize the environmental impact of farming, Britain's top science academy said on Wednesday. The Royal Society said in a report the world faced a "grand challenge" to feed another 2.3 billion people by 2050 and at the same time limit the environmental impact of the farm sector. The world will have to increase food output by 70 percent and invest $83 billion annually in developing countries by mid... Read Full Story
The EU Commission stressed Thursday that health and environmental factors were foremost in approving genetically modified foodstuffs, while protesting farmers and environmentalists called for an outright ban. "GMOs (genetically modified organisms) are one of the most sensitive dossiers on my desk," EU Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou said during a meeting with farmers organised by Greenpeace in front of the Brussels headquarters of the commission. "Our priority is to make sure when we... Read Full Story
Famuer Rasmussen Jr. and five other farmers filed what they thought was a routine request to grow genetically modified sugar beets on public land in Colorado's Boulder County. The county already had allowed genetically altered corn. But the farmers got an earful. Complaints from residents and organic food activists concerned about the crops' safety and local businesses hoping to maintain Boulder as a center for natural and organic products prompted county commissioners to reassess their... Read Full Story
Indian regulators approved on Wednesday the introduction of genetically modified aubergines, potentially making them the first transgenic vegetable to be grown on local farms, a top official told AFP. The much-awaited clearance by the state-run Genetically Engineering Appraisal Committee could lead to production of the vegetable -- known as aubergines, eggplant or brinjals in India -- if approved by the government. "The Committee examined all the reports and studies and found it bio-safe and... Read Full Story
‘A total population of 250-300 million people, a 95% decline from present levels, would be ideal.’ – Ted Turner to Audubon Magazine, 1996
In an April 18th 2009 article on the development of GM-Food for the African continent, ‘Strange Fruit: Could genetically modified foods offer a solution to the world’s food crisis? the author mentions that the Rockefeller Foundation has recently set out to fund the process of ‘biofortified rice’ for third world nations, invented by a Swiss scientist... Read Full Story
Environmentalists dressed as giant ears of corn on Tuesday asked for "agricultural asylum" in the French embassy in Madrid in a protest over genetically modified crops. The environmental organisation Friends of the Earth organised the symbolic act to protest Spain's "large-scale" production of genetically modified corn, which is banned in France. Around 20 protesters from several European countries and dressed as corn cobs demonstrated outside the French embassy in central Madrid. They... Read Full Story
Environmentalists dressed as giant ears of corn Tuesday asked for "agricultural asylum" in the French embassy in Madrid in a protest over genetically modified crops. The environmental organisation Friends of the Earth organised the symbolic act to protest Spain's "large-scale" production of genetically modified corn, which is banned in France. Around 20 protesters from several European countries and dressed as corn cobs demonstrated outside the French embassy in central Madrid. They handed... Read Full Story
