Glyphosate is turning up in manure-based fertiliser used by gardeners and organic and conventional growers and the residues can ruin yields of tomatoes and other sensitive crops, research from Finland shows. For the research, the scientists compared results from two manure-based fertilisers marketed for professional horticultural use. The first was the original fertiliser tested by the tomato grower and shown to contain glyphosate residue at a level of 0.94 mg/kg. The control fertiliser underwent similar testing and was found to have 0.23 mg/kg glyphosate. As manure-based fertilisers, both products were marketed as suitable for certified organic crop production, but this does not mean the manure is from certified organic livestock. To test the fertilisers, the scientists grew tomato plants for 14 weeks in a greenhouse. The scientists found that the total harvest of tomatoes grown with the fertiliser with the higher level of glyphosate residue was 35% smaller, and the yield of first-class tomatoes 37% lower, than that of the control fertiliser with the lower glyphosate level. GMWatch

 

 

Switzerland's Committee for Science, Education and Culture of the National Council (WBK-N) has agreed to extend the cultivation moratorium on genetically modified plants until 2027 - including those made with new genetic engineering techniques. The next step is for the proposal to be submitted to the National Council and Council of States. The NGO SAG (Swiss Alliance for a GMO-Free Agriculture) welcomed WBK-N's decision, but cautioned: "This may just be a way of waiting for the results of the currently blocked legislative processes in the EU. Now is not the time to relax – industry's lobbying is continuing at full throttle in the background." SAG advises Swiss citizens to sign the food protection initiative to help keep Swiss food GMO-free. SAG

 

 

Over 370 food companies and retailers from 16 countries are urging the EU Agriculture Council to prioritise transparency, labelling, and fair competition in the forthcoming regulations on new genomic techniques (new GM techniques). [GMWatch covered this story here, but it's great to see it go mainstream.] Feed Navigator

 

 

Plant-based meat maker Impossible Foods and food tech company Motif Foodworks, a spinoff of Boston-based Ginkgo Bioworks, have settled out of court their bitter dispute over heme protein, two-and-a-half years after the litigation began. According to a filing in the US District Court for the District of Delaware, Impossible Foods has agreed to take over Motif FoodWorks’ heme business. The heme ingredient [in Impossible Foods' case this ingredient – more accurately named soy leghemoglobin – is derived from GMO yeast] gives plant-based analogues a meaty taste and appearance, and is used by Impossible Foods to help make its burgers "bleed". Impossible Foods filed a lawsuit in 2022, accusing Motif Foodworks of patent infringement. At times, things got bitter, with Motif Foodworks accusing Impossible Foods of hiring private investigators who took on fake identities to obtain information about its products. But now a settlement, the details of which are not public, has been reached, with both companies agreeing to pay their own costs. [GMW: According to one report, the two companies' legal battles may not be over.] Green queen

 

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