Trade consultations requested by the United States on Mexico's plan to limit the use of genetically modified corn are an "unacceptable violation" of Mexican law, a top Mexican official said. "The United States' request to Mexico follows the interests of seed, agrochemical, and other food-producing oligopolies," said Mexican Deputy Agriculture Minister Victor Suarez. Suarez said that seed makers Bayer AG, Corteva Inc, ChemChina's Syngenta and BASF are "winning" under the US' trade and agricultural policies, but that they do not represent all US growers. Washington requested consultations after Mexico softened an original plan to ban GMO corn across the board and instead opened its use for animal feed and industrial use. However, Mexico retained plans to prohibit GMO corn's use for human consumption, which applies to flour, dough or tortilla made from the grain. Reuters

 

 

Ronnie Cummins (1946-2023), a leading figure in the organic and regenerative movement globally, has passed away from complications related to recently diagnosed bone and lymph cancer. Ronnie was the co-founder and International Director of the Organic Consumers Association (OCA) and its international affiliates Via Organica (Mexico) and Regeneration International. Cummins was active as a writer and activist since the 1960s, with extensive experience in public education, grassroots mobilisation, and marketplace pressure campaigns. Over the past three decades he has served as director of US and international campaigns dealing with agriculture issues including organic standards, food safety, genetic engineering, factory farming, and global warming. Sustainable Pulse

 

 

A guest interview about the risks of GMO crops and foods, particularly new generation GMOs, with Dr Michael Antoniou, starts at 15 mins 45 secs in this podcast. The interviewer is James Freeman, host of the Freeman Report. PodBean

 

 

Improvement of the micronutrient content of rice through a cross-breeding approach has been successful for zinc. High-zinc rice varieties for different rice ecosystems, including irrigated lowland, upland, and swampy areas, have been developed and have the potential to be used for biofortification to reduce stunting prevalence. Journal of Agriculture and Food Research

 

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