In India, over 100 medical doctors have sent a letter to prime minister Narendra Modi calling upon him to stop the environmental release of genetically modified mustard DMH-11 and its two parental lines, which are tolerant to the toxic herbicide glufosinate ammonium. The doctors write that they are not opposed to application of gene technologies in medicine, "as it is done after thorough testing, consumed by individual choice, closely monitored by expert doctors, with the GMO-mediated medicines/supplements prepared in contained conditions without any release of GMOs into the environment and can be halted/recalled". In contrast, they write, "GM in farming and food is both uncontrollable and irreversible and affects both present and future generations." GMWatch

 

 

The United States government has expressed “deep concerns” about Mexico’s plan to phase out genetically modified corn imports by January 2024. US Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack met with President López Obrador in Mexico City on Monday, and subsequently released a statement saying that the US government could take steps to enforce its legal rights under the USMCA free trade pact if “acceptable resolution of the issue isn’t reached". Mexico News Daily

 

 

A new non-GM drought-tolerant variety of durum wheat has been created as part of an international breeding programme to boost climate resilience in the food system by increasing crop diversity. Durum wheat is used to make pasta, pizza crusts, and flatbreads such as pitta and chapatis, as well as for couscous, bulgur and pastry for desserts such as baklava. The new wheat Jabal, which means “mountain” in Arabic, was developed by farmers and crop scientists by crossing a commercial durum wheat with a wild relative from an arid region of Syria, to create a new durum variety which can withstand drought. [GMW: Please note we have added the wheat and the nutritious winter peas featured in the item below to our database of Non-GM Successes.] The Guardian

 

 

The first winter pea cultivars specifically developed to be used whole or as an ingredient in human food have been released by the US Agricultural Research Service. Winter or autumn-sown peas (Pisum sativum) — also called "black peas" or "field peas" — are annual legumes with excellent nitrogen-fixing abilities. Among their selling points are their high protein levels with a nearly complete amino acid profile, the absence of the allergens common in soy and peanuts, and their non-GMO status. USDA ARS

 

 

It’s taken 23 years for Canadian Parliamentarians to consider amendments to the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) but an adviser for Nature Canada says the changes may not go nearly far enough on the issue of genetically engineered organisms. “We do have to do something different because if we just regulate these GMOs (genetically modified organisms) like we’ve regulated chemicals, we’re going to be in trouble,” Mark Butler with Nature Canada said in reference to Bill S-5, introduced in the Canadian Senate on February 9 as an amendment to CEPA, first passed in 1999. Health Canada, by August 2021, had given the green light for genetically engineered salmon grown in Prince Edward Island to be sold in Canada but Butler said it’s difficult to get the company or government to say if GE salmon is actually being sold in grocery stores and restaurants. Saltwire

 

 

The Japanese version of "Gene Editing - Myths and Reality", published by the Greens/EFA in the EU Parliament and written by Claire Robinson of GMWatch, was published in December last year. A reminder that the link for circulating to Japanese-speaking colleagues is here. okseed.jp

 

 

Did Drs Francis Collins and Anthony Fauci commit research misconduct? A recent batch of internal NIH emails suggests they did, by providing “advice and leadership” on a widely cited paper that did not acknowledge their involvement and dismissed a possible virus research lab accident in China. The issue? Hiding an author’s contribution to a paper is ghostwriting or plagiarism to be handled by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Research Integrity (ORI), according to a 2011 letter signed by Collins, while Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Last week, investigative reporter Paul D. Thacker sent copies of the unredacted emails, as well a link to Collins’s 2011 letter, and asked the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Research Integrity and NIH a series of questions about how they handle evidence of ghostwriting and plagiarism as defined by Collins. Both HHS and NIH have refused to respond. The Disinformation Chronicle

 

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