China’s approval process for bioengineered agricultural crops is costing the U.S. economy billions of dollars in lost sales, according to an analysis released May 30 by Informa Agribusiness Consulting. The report, commissioned by CropLife International, was issued as the United States and China prepare for another round of trade consultations. The report, The Impact of Delays in Chinese Approvals of Biotech Crops, quantifies the economic impact due to the delayed availability of new biotech products for farmers in major biotechnology cultivation countries, including the United States ... Read More
Biotechnology
USDA to host public webinar on proposed National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) will host an informational webinar about the proposed National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard on June 1 on the AMS website. USDA said the pre-recorded webinar will provide an overview of the background, provisions and potential impacts of the proposed standard, which would require food manufacturers and other entities that label foods for retail sale to disclose information about bioengineered food and bioengineered food ingredients. The new standard was enacted by Congress in 2016. As a member of ... Read More
NGFA preparing industry feedback on proposed National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard
The NGFA and its Crop Technology (formerly Biotechnology) committee has begun an intensive analysis of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) recently issued proposed rule for labeling food products containing bioengineered ingredients. The NGFA encourages input from its members as the Association develops its official comments, as well as provides input into the comments being developed by the Coalition for Safe and Affordable Food, on whose steering committee NGFA serves. While the proposed rule for the National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard, which the agency published on ... Read More
USDA awards research project to examine consumer acceptance of gene-editing technologies
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has awarded approximately $2 million to pursue research on stakeholder and public engagement on new plant breeding innovation techniques, such as gene-editing, intended for use in agricultural production. The funding is being provided by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) through its so-called “Social Implications of Emerging Technologies initiative.” The initiative is housed within the agency’s Agriculture Economics and Rural Communities (AERC)’s program area. “Recent advances in gene editing technologies promise ... Read More
USDA issues proposal for labeling food containing bioengineered ingredients
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service today officially published in the Federal Register a proposed rule to implement the bioengineered food labeling law enacted by Congress in July 2016. The 30-page proposed rule outlines the conditions under which a food containing bioengineered ingredients would need to be labeled. The law created a federal preemption to provide one set of standards governing the labeling rules to preclude potential enactment of a plethora of different labeling schemes by states or localities that would have disrupted interstate ... Read More
NGFA Statement on Issuance of USDA Bioengineered Food Disclosure Proposed Rule
ARLINGTON, Va., May 3, 2018 – The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) today noted the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) issuance of a proposed rule designed to implement the national bioengineered food disclosure labeling law (P.L. 114-216) enacted by Congress in 2016. As a member of the Steering Committee of the Safe Affordable Food Coalition, the NGFA said the proposed rule represents a significant step toward establishing a final standard that is designed to give consumers access to more information about the bioengineered content of the food they purchase, while providing ... Read More
USDA issues statement on regulation of innovative plant breeding techniques; NGFA issues response
By Randy Gordon, President Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue on March 28 issued a statement “clarifying” the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s policy regarding regulatory oversight of plants produced using innovative plant breeding techniques, such as gene editing. Consistent with previous USDA policy, Perdue said the department “does not regulate or have plans to regulate plants that could otherwise have been developed through traditional breeding techniques as long as they are not plant pests or developed using plant pests.” Perdue added that, “with this approach, USDA seeks to ... Read More
NGFA issues statement on regulation of plant breeding innovation
ARLINGTON, Va., March 28, 2018 -- The National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) issued the following statement on plant breeding innovation, such as gene editing techniques, following today's announcement by Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue stating that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) "does not regulate or have plans to regulate plants that could otherwise have been developed through traditional breeding techniques as long as they are not plant pests or developed using plant pests." NGFA President and Chief Executive Officer Randy Gordon: "For grain ... Read More
EU approves Bayer-Monsanto merger
The European Commission approved Bayer’s purchase of Monsanto on the condition that both companies spin off additional assets. The $66 billion deal is the latest of three big mergers in the global seed and pesticide markets. Dow and Dupont, and ChemChina and Syngenta led an earlier wave of consolidation in the sector. The European Commission said Bayer had addressed its concerns with its offer to sell some of its assets to rival BASF. Specifically, Bayer agreed to transfer three herbicide research projects and the license to its digital farming portfolio to BASF. Monsanto agreed to ... Read More
European countries vote against genetically modified crops
Several European Union governments on Monday voted against the cultivation of three genetically modified maize strains developed by Syngenta, Monsanto and Pioneer. Sixteen countries voted against authorizing two GM strains manufactured by Syngenta and Dow, while 14 voted against the Monsanto trait. Despite the number of countries voting against the GM crops, the bloc failed to reach a “qualified majority” of votes that would force the European Commission to dismiss its authorization in Europe, meaning the commission must make the final decision. (A qualified majority is achieved when at ... Read More
National Grain and Feed Association
TwitterYoutubeFacebookLinkedin