19/April/22

 

Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) are proposing to remove government regulation for many new GMOs produced using the new genetic engineering techniques of gene editing. If allowed to move forward, these changes would result in a profound lack of transparency on genetically engineered foods and seeds for Canadians, shows a new report from CBAN. Unregulated GMOs would be secret GMOs. Product developers would own and control all the information about new unregulated GMOs entering the market and would not be required to provide any information to the federal government. Companies would not be required to inform the government that these new unregulated GMOs exist. CBAN

 

 

Groups including GMO-Free Nigeria, Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) and Friends of the Earth Nigeria have applauded the Senate for considering a bill to review Nigeria's National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA) Act with the aim of protecting food safety and public interests in Nigeria. Nnimmo Bassey, director of HOMEF, commented, “This is a huge milestone towards defending the rights of Nigerian citizens to safe food and environment. It is a step in the right direction for consumers and especially for smallholder farmers who are directly impacted by GMOs and associated chemicals, and yet have little or no knowledge or choice about the entry of these unnatural varieties into our food system or of their potential risks." GMWatch

 

 

Wildlife biologist Rod Cumberland is continuing to speak out about the impact of the herbicide glyphosate on New Brunswick forests, even after his dismissal from his college which he claims was due to being outspoken on the subject. “If your glyphosate is so good, and you have such solid research, let everybody sit at the table, discuss the science, and let’s look at whether it actually is or not,” Cumberland said. Cumberland, who was formerly the chief deer biologist for New Brunswick, claims the heavy use of glyphosate in forestry has devastated the province’s white-tailed deer population, which has plummeted by over 70% since the mid-1980s. Western Standard

 

 

Bayer is often portrayed as an aspirin maker that inexplicably sullied its brand by jumping into bed with Monsanto. But Bayer's own record of corporate crimes is easily as dark as Monsanto's. Where it has had more success, until now, is in hiding the dark side of its history. GMWatch

 

 

The California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) is proposing changes to its messaging to consumers regarding the cancer risk associated with glyphosate-based weedkillers. The language shift is subtle but significant for multiple reasons, including the potential for it to impact Monsanto’s efforts to appeal trial losses to the US Supreme Court. The language changes appear to favour Monsanto by ignoring an internal debate among scientists at the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over the cancer risk of glyphosate and lending strength to official EPA proclamations that glyphosate is safe. UnSpun

 

 

The people who want to grow yet more GMO potatoes in open fields claim to be furthering science but they haven't published any results for the previous six years of similar trials. What are they hiding? If you don’t want new GM potato field trials to go ahead, let the Government know before 2 May. GM Freeze