INITIATIVE
RELEASES GENE FLOW STUDY RESULTS
The Gene
Flow in Plants and Microorganisms Initiative, based
in the United Kingdom, and funded by the U.K. Biotechnology
and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)
and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC),
recently released its findings on gene flow.
Researchers
with the Initiative have found that the probability of
genes flowing from genetically modified organisms (GMO)
to soil bacteria is “vanishingly small” and
highly unlikely. They also found that a separation distance
of around 100 meters between GM and conventional crops
is already enough to curtail the transfer of genetic material
into the environment. The greatest frequency of genetic
exchange, the researchers found, was between conventional
oilseed rape and the crop’s wild relative, Brassica
napa.
The
Initiative aimed to provide a greater understanding of
the molecular basis of gene flow, as well as the consequences
of such a phenomenon. Read its press release at http://www.nerc.ac.uk/publications/latestpressrelease/
2005-29geneflowmediabrief.asp.
ECOWAS
MINISTERS URGED TO IMPLEMENT BIOTECH ACTION PLAN
Ministers
of Agriculture from the Economic Community for West African
States (ECOWAS) gathered today in the Malian capital of
Bamako to endorse a regional action plan for agricultural
biotechnology development.
The
Ministerial meeting was officially opened by Hon. Ahmed
Diane Semega, Malian minister of Mining, Energy, and Water.
He urged ECOWAS Ministers to take advantage of the new
opportunities offered by science and technology especially
biotechnology to play a role in addressing some of these
challenges.
The
meeting of experts came up with key recommendations to
set the Action Plan in motion. They included increasing
investment in biotechnology research and development; ratifying
the Cartagena Protocol; developing and adopting national
biosafety laws and biotechnology policies by 1st July 2006;
facilitating harmonization of the regional biosafety systems
by July 2008; cooperating with regional and international
organizations to establish biotechnology information centres
and to raise public awareness; creating a fund to monitor
and evaluate the impact of agricultural biotechnology on
the economies of the sub region; and ensuring dialogue
among all stakeholders.
For
more information, email dotunge@absfafrica.org
EU
COUNCIL FAILS TO LIFT ILLEGAL BANS ON GM PRODUCTS
Despite
the European Union’s (EU) own scientific authorities’ assertion
that genetically modified (GM) products are safe, some
five Member States still implement bans on EU-approved
GM products. The EU Environmental Council was unable to
lift the bans in Austria, France, Greece, Germany, and
Luxembourg through a qualified majority vote.
EuropaBio,
the association of bioindustries in Europe, said that this
the first time that the Council has voted to reject an
EU proposal to remove safeguard measures on GM products.
The Scientific Committees and the European Food Safety
Authority had earlier reviewed the justifications provided
by the Member States and, in every case, had concluded
that the bans are not justified. The vote however, does
not affect any current commercial planting.
Meanwhile, “Plants
for the Future”, the new European agricultural research
agenda, will be announced on July 5 in Strasbourg by Commissioner
Potocnik, EU Research Commissioner. This will be web cast
live from http://www.europabio.org.
Visit http://www.europabio.org/articles/Invite%20to%
20Green%20SRA%20TP%20launch.htm for more news from Europabio.
U.S.
CONGRESSIONAL REPORT ON AGRI-BIOTECH
The
United States Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the
Library of Congress has made available its report “Agricultural
biotechnology: Background and recent issues”. Authored
by Geoffrey S. Becker, specialist in agricultural policy
of the CRS resources, science, and industry division, the
report looks into the adoption of biotechnology in agriculture,
current applications, future applications, regulatory framework,
agri-biotech issues, and related information.
The
CRS report noted that the US Congress generally has been
supportive of genetically engineered agricultural products,
although some Members have expressed wariness about their
adoption and regulation. The 109th Congress will likely
continue to follow trade developments, particularly the
US-European Union dispute, as well as US regulatory mechanisms
for approving biotech foods.
See
the full report at http://fpc.state.gov/documents/
organization/45199.pdf
IR-MAIZE
TO BE LAUNCHED
July
5th, 2005 will mark the first day that Imidazolinone-Resistant
maize (IR-maize), or the Clearfield system, will be used.
Eight years of research will culminate in a launch in Kisumu,
Kenya, and in a ceremony to be presided over by Kenya Agricultural
Research Institute (KARI)
Director Dr. Romano Kiome.
IR-maize,
developed by breeding, protects the crop from Striga,
a parasitic weed that has caused major problems for Sub-Saharan
African farmers for over 70 years. Various control methods
have been exercised over the years, but none have been
effective in attacking the weed before its emergence. The
new technology does exactly that: germinating Striga is
killed before it can infect maize roots, and remaining
seeds of the weed are destroyed, reducing weed numbers
dramatically.
Read
more at http://www.kari.org.
TRADITIONAL
BREEDING YIELDS NEW RICE
Recent
traditional breeding work has yielded a new variety of
rice that is heavier with seeds, but not too tall to fall
or rot in the rain. Motoyuki Ashikari of Nagoya University,
and colleagues published their work, “Cytokinin Oxidase
Regulates Rice Grain Production,” in the journal
Science.
Researchers
scoured through the rice genome, investigating areas that
influenced seed productivity. They singled out Gn1a, which
codes for cytokinin oxidase/dehydrogenase, an enzyme that
degrades the plant hormone cytokinin. An inactive Gn1a
gene keeps the hormone intact, and allows it to accumulate
in the plant – this, in turn, pushes a plant to produce
more seeds.
Scientists
screened the DNA of thousands of plants, some of them well
known for producing many seeds, and others tending to be
short, in order to select the best plants to cross with
each other. A successful cross finally yielded the desired
breed.
Read
the press release at http://www.nature.com/news/
2005/050620/full/050620-13.html
GERMANY
TO FUND BIOSAFETY RESEARCH
With
issues such as the effectiveness of antibiotics and herbicides
attached to genetically modified (GM) crops, studies are
needed to evaluate the safety of these crops, in terms
of their effect on health and the environment. In order
to meet this need, the German government will support research
into the safety of GM plants with ten million euro over
the next three years.
A
total of 24 projects will receive funding. Seven of them
will address the replacement of antibiotics and herbicide
resistance genes; nine will focus on transgenic maize varieties;
while the rest of the projects will investigate safety
aspects of fungus-resistant biotech crops and transgenic
potatoes.
Results
of the studies will soon be available at http://www.biosicherheit.de
CROP
BIOTECH RESEARCH PART OF GATES FOUNDATION INITIATIVE
GOALS
The
Grand Challenges in Global Health Initiative has offered
43 grants totaling $436.6 million for a broad range of
innovative research projects involving scientists in 33
countries. These projects aim to achieve important advances
in preventing, treating, and curing diseases of the developing
world.
One of the Initiative’s goals is to grow more nutritious staple crops
to combat malnutrition. In particular, the project will develop a more nutritious
strain of cassava which will take longer to ripen, and which will be lower
in naturally occurring cyanide as well.
The
Initiative is a major effort to achieve scientific breakthroughs
against diseases that kill millions of people each year
in the world’s poorest countries. It is supported
by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Wellcome
Trust, and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR),
and is managed by the same donors, along with the National
Institutes of Health.
For
more information, visit http://www.gatesfoundation.org/
GlobalHealth/Announcements/Announce-050627.htm. Read more about the projects
at Details of projects at: http://www.gatesfoundation.org/nr/downloads/
globalhealth/GCGH_Grants_Backgrounder.pdf
FAMILY
FARMS DOCUMENTED IN RESEARCH
Family
farms have proven to be good business for centuries, and
have dominated agriculture in some parts of Asia and Africa.
But how resilient will it be in the current era? Michael
Lipton explores this in “The Family Farm in a Globalizing
World: The Role of Crop Science in Alleviating Poverty.”
Lipton
found that small farms are advantageous to developing countries,
while large farms work better in developed countries. The
ability of a farm to survive can be measured by land and
water sustainability, a trait most threatened by crop expansion
into marginal lands. It is this sustainability, and its
consequent increase of farm productivity and employment
income, that can reduce mass poverty. Thus, the evolution
of the family farm is closely linked to economic development.
Read
more at http://www.ifpri.org/2020/dp/vp40.asp.
RR
WHEAT WELFARE IMPLICATIONS STUDIED
In “Welfare
Implications of Introducing Biotech Traits in a Market
with Segments and Segregation Costs: The Case of Roundup
Ready Wheat,” William Wilson and colleagues of North
Dakota State University develop a spatial partial equilibrium
model of the higher-protein hard wheat market and assess
the changes in the distribution of welfare associated with
release and adoption of Roundup Ready Wheat (RRW).
Researchers
found that in the most likely scenario – full market
acceptance – total welfare would increase to US$
787 million, producer welfare would increase by US$ 301
million, and consumer welfare would increase by US$ 252
million.
RRW is not on the market, but it was one of the first genetically modified
wheat varieties submitted for review to regulatory agencies in the United States
and Canada. To find out more, read the article at http://agecon.lib.umn.edu/cgi-bin/detailview.pl?paperid=16767.
| A
N N O U N C E M E N T S |
IFPRI
Trainings
The
International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)
will hold two trainings in Ethiopia. One is on “Managing
Agricultural Research for Development within Innovation
Systems Perspective” to be held in Addis Ababa
on October 3-20, 2005. Deadline for applications is on
August 25, 2005. The other is on “Law and Policy
of Relevance to the Management of Plant Genetic Resources” at
the Alemaya University on January 23-28, 2006. Deadline
for applications is on December 7, 2005.To apply for
the above workshops, download the application form from http://www.ifpri.org/training/WSAppForm.pdf or
email IFPRI-ISNARLearning@cgiar.org. |
