08/September/22

 

A group of 56 international scientists and policy experts have published a statement opposing the use of the term “precision breeding” to describe gene or genome editing, on the grounds that it is “technically and scientifically inaccurate and therefore misleads Parliament, regulators, and the public”. The move comes at a time when the UK government is planning to remove regulatory controls around (“deregulate”) gene-editing technology in food and farming. It has published a draft bill, the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Bill, which is currently working its way through Parliament. The bill creates a new subclass of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), calling them “precision bred organisms” or PBOs and claiming that they could have occurred naturally or through traditional breeding. The term “precision breeding”, in addition to being used in the title and text of the UK draft bill, is also increasingly used in the EU by those who want to see gene-edited crops, foods, and animals deregulated. The 56 scientists state that the UK government and others should abandon the use of the term “precision breeding” and stick to accurate and descriptive terms, such as gene editing. They point to risks to health and the environment posed by gene-edited organisms and ask that they continue to be subjected to in-depth risk assessment, traceability, and labelling. GMWatch

 

 

The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) believes that the herbicide active substance glyphosate is not carcinogenic or mutagenic (damaging to DNA). Dr Angeliki Lyssimachou of HEAL and toxicologist Dr Peter Clausing have prepared a detailed report to challenge ECHA's classification of glyphosate. They give a detailed analysis of no less than eleven rat and mice studies which show the genotoxic and carcinogenic effect of the chemical. HEAL

 

 

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) explains its classification of glyphosate as a probable carcinogen via a video presentation by scientists Kathryn Guyton and Kurt Straif. IARC

 

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