Tag: biotechnology
-
Brockovich Champions GMO Labeling In Time Magazine Editorial
Environmental activist Erin Brockovich uses the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) recent determination that genetically engineered salmon is safe for human consumption and requires no labeling as such to rally consumers into action against genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in a December 1, 2015, opinion piece in Time. “The biotech industry and the FDA have…
-
FDA Issues Labeling Guidance for Foods Derived from GE Plants, GE Salmon
In conjunction with its decision to approve the first genetically engineered (GE) animal for human consumption, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has published final labeling guidance for foods derived from GE crops and draft labeling guidance for GE salmon. Titled “Voluntary Labeling Indicating Whether Foods Have or Have Not Been Derived from Genetically Engineered Plants,”…
-
FDA Determines GE Salmon Safe for Consumption, Environment
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has released its determination that genetically engineered (GE) salmon produced by AquaBounty Technologies, Inc., is as safe to eat as conventional salmon and will have little effect on the environment. Containing genes from Pacific Chinook salmon and ocean pout that accelerate growth and maturation, AquAdvantage® salmon is the…
-
Biotechnology Product Regulation Target of Upcoming Public Meeting
Three federal agencies are convening an October 30, 2015, public meeting in Silver Spring, Maryland, to discuss a July 2015 memorandum issued by the Executive Office of the President (EOP) directing the agencies to clarify their roles in the oversight of biotechnology products, develop long-term regulatory strategies and commission an independent study of the biotech…
-
Russia Halts Domestic Production of GM Foods
Russia has imposed a moratorium on the use of genetically modified organisms in domestic food production. Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich reportedly made the announcement during a biotechnology conference in Kirov on September 18, 2015. Russia’s action follows similar moves by France, Germany and Scotland. See Reuters, September 18, 2015. Issue 580
-
Organic Industry Condemns USDA Report
Organic growers and food safety advocates, including the National Organic Coalition (NOC), have condemned recommendations contained in the final report of the Advisory Committee on Biotechnology and 21st Century Agriculture (AC21), a group appointed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to address transgenic contamination of organic and non-genetically engineered (GE) crops. GE crops make…
-
Andrew Torrance, “Planted Obsolescence: Synagriculture and the Law,” Idaho L. Rev., 2012
University of Kansas School of Law Professor Andrew Torrance discusses in this article the promises of synthetic biology, which takes genetic engineering (GE) one step further by designing organisms from scratch, and its potential perils. Dubbed “synagriculture,” the new technology is apparently being developed by those dedicated to sharing, spreading and pooling innovative biotechnologies and…
-
ISAAA Reports 2011 Growth in GM Crop Acreage
The International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA) has released its annual report on the global status of genetically modified (GM) crops, claiming that in 2011 “a record of 16.7 million farmers, up 1.3 million or 8 percent from 2010, grew biotech crops.” According to ISAAA, these gains reflected increased plantings by developing…