02/September/20

 

An international panel of scientists who spoke in a webinar on genetically modified (GM) Bt cotton in India on 24 August presented evidence to show that the technology is ill-suited to Indian conditions and has failed to deliver on its promises. The webinar, organised by the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture and Jatan, a non-profit trust promoting organic farming, provides an evidence-based evaluation of 18 years of approved Bt cotton cultivation in India. GMWatch

 

 

Experts have slammed a recent move of the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) — a government-appointed committee responsible for appraisal of proposals of genetically engineered organisms — giving its greenlight for biosafety research-level-II (BRL-II) field trials for Event 142, a new variety of genetically modified brinjal (Bt brinjal) during its 139th meeting May 19, 2020. The experts have alleged regulatory lapses over giving such an approval. DownToEarth

 

 

While uncertain and risky GMO approaches to mosquito-borne diseases continue to raise concerns in the countries targeted for experimentation, like Brazil, Burkina Faso, and most recently the United States, two remarkable breakthroughs have recently been made involving highly effective natural means of preventing the transmission of such diseases. In the most recent instance, a randomized field trial found that mosquitoes infected with a natural bacterium called Wolbachia reduced cases of dengue by an "extraordinary" 77%. Wolbachia stops the insects from transmitting some viruses when they bite people. GMWatch

 

 

Top grocery retailers Walmart, Costco, Albertsons, Kroger, Ahold, Aldi, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Hy-Vee, Sprouts, Giant Eagle, Meijer and Target have affirmed their commitment to not sell genetically engineered AquAdvantage® salmon ahead of AquaBounty Technologies' planned first-ever harvest and commercial sales in the US. GMWatch

 

 

Bayer’s comprehensive settlement of US lawsuits over its Roundup weedkiller is in jeopardy after lawyers for some consumers accused the company of reneging on the $11 billion deal and the judge overseeing the litigation questioned its truthfulness. US District Judge Vince Chhabria said during a hearing that he’s concerned Bayer has “manipulated” the settlement process since announcing its plan in June to resolve 125,000 cases alleging that the herbicide causes cancer. He said he will revisit in a month whether to keep the litigation on hold for settlement talks to continue or to let more trials proceed. Bloomberg