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Background: Soybean is one of major crop plants cultivated in numerous parts of the world, which is due to an increasing demand for plant protein. Both in Europe and Poland, much attention is paid to enhancing the production of their own fodder protein, as to reduce the import of soybean meal produced from genetically modified plants. Climate warming and breeding progress have made it possible to grow soybeans in central Europe. The yield potential of plants, including soybeans, can be enhanced by an application of biostimulants, which alleviate negative effects of stresses disturbing the life processes of plants. The objective of the present work was to evaluate, under the climatic conditions of central-eastern Poland, the yielding of three non-modified soybean cultivars treated with biostimulants. Methods: A field experiment was conducted in the years 2017–2019 in eastern Poland (central Europe). The soil of the experimental field belonged to the Haplic Luvisol group. The experimental factors included three non-GMO soybean cultivars (Abelina, Merlin, and SG Anser) and two biostimulants (Asahi SL and Improver). Results: Soybean seed yields were affected by the climatic conditions during the growing season, cultivars, and biostimulant applications. Regardless of cultivars and biostimulants, the highest yields were produced by plants grown in 2017 (on average, 3.41 Mg∙ha−1), them being slightly lower in 2019 (on average, 3.0 Mg∙ha−1) and the lowest in the dry 2018 (on average, 2.48 Mg∙ha−1). Significant differences were recorded between cv. SG Anser (the average yield 2.73 Mg∙ha−1) and Merlin (the average yield 3.31 Mg∙ha−1). An application of biostimulants resulted in a significant increase in soybean seed yield compared with the control. Biostimulants contributed to a significant increase in the values of the remaining characteristics, i.e., 1000-seed weight, seed number per pod, and average number of seeds per pod. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The application of New Breeding Techniques (NBTs) in Vitis vinifera is highly desirable to introduce valuable traits while preserving the genotype of the elite cultivars. However, a broad application of NBTs through standard DNA-based transformation is poorly accepted by public opinion and law regulations in Europe and other countries due to the stable integration of exogenous DNA, which leads to transgenic plants possibly affected by chimerism. A single-cell based approach, coupled with a DNA-free transfection of the CRISPR/Cas editing machinery, constitutes a powerful tool to overcome these problems and maintain the original genetic make-up in the whole organism. We here describe a successful single-cell based, DNA-free methodology to obtain edited grapevine plants, regenerated from protoplasts isolated from embryogenic callus of two table grapevine varieties (V. vinifera cv. Crimson seedless and Sugraone). The regenerated, non-chimeric plants were edited on the downy- and powdery-mildew susceptibility genes, VviDMR6 and VviMlo6 respectively, either as single or double mutants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The most commercialized Bt maize plants in Europe were transformed with genes which express a truncated form of the insecticidal delta-endotoxin (Cry1Ab) from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) specifically against Lepidoptera. Studies on the effect of transgenic maize on non-target arthropods have mainly converged on beneficial insects. However, considering the worldwide extensive cultivation of Bt maize, an increased availability of information on their possible impact on non-target pests is also required. In this study, the impact of Bt-maize on the non-target corn leaf aphid, Rhopalosiphum maidis, was examined by comparing biological traits and demographic parameters of two generations of aphids reared on transgenic maize with those on untransformed near-isogenic plants. Furthermore, free and bound phenolics content on transgenic and near-isogenic plants were measured. Here we show an increased performance of the second generation of R. maidis on Bt-maize that could be attributable to indirect effects, such as the reduction of defense against pests due to unintended changes in plant characteristics caused by the insertion of the transgene. Indeed, the comparison of Bt-maize with its corresponding near-isogenic line strongly suggests that the transformation could have induced adverse effects on the biosynthesis and accumulation of free phenolic compounds. In conclusion, even though there is adequate evidence that aphids performed better on Bt-maize than on non-Bt plants, aphid economic damage has not been reported in commercial Bt corn fields in comparison to non-Bt corn fields. Nevertheless, Bt-maize plants can be more easily exploited by R. maidis, possibly due to a lower level of secondary metabolites present in their leaves. The recognition of this mechanism increases our knowledge concerning how insect-resistant genetically modified plants impact on non-target arthropods communities, including tritrophic web interactions, and can help support a sustainable use of genetically modified crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plant diseases represent a major constraint on agricultural production. Finding sustainable novel means for their control is an important challenge. The ever‐increasing knowledge and understanding of plant–microbe interactions has led to several ingenious transgenic approaches to combat disease. The first transgenic disease‐resistant plants expressed single or a few stacked genes encoding antimicrobial proteins. Whereas the first attempts were disappointing in the field, several examples from recent field studies are promising and some of these use ingenious designer approaches. Less progress has been made with antimicrobial metabolites where the challenges lie in obtaining biosynthetic genes and in coordinating their expression. The increased understanding of the processes regulating plant defence (plant immunity) and modes of action of pathogen effector proteins have also led to novel strategies for designing resistant plants. The most promising of these is host‐induced gene silencing that targets specific pathogens, either the effectors or, preferably, essential housekeeping genes. With these approaches, and several maverick examples of "genes pulled out of a hat," the technical effort in designing resistant plants is finally paying off. The prospects are good, biologically speaking, but can industry deliver? There is still an issue of public acceptance of genetic engineering of crop plants, especially in Europe; so whilst considerable strategic and practical progress has been made over the last decade, vanishingly few products have been adopted by agriculture. Some of these have been in use for over two decades. As yet, all are against viral diseases and not against diseases caused by microorganisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cultivation of GM crops in Europe has a long history of disagreement. While the legal framework is based on a safety assessment, the disagreement goes beyond such risks and is rooted in political, social and cultural grounds. In 2015, with the discussion having become deadlocked—neither Member States (MS) who wanted to cultivate GM crops nor those who did not could have their way—Directive (EU) 2015/412 was adopted. This Directive which, in addition to the safety assessment, enables MS to prohibit the cultivation of GMOs in their territory based on non-safety considerations, was supposed to remove the deadlock and give MS autonomy to restrict cultivation. However, as of 2018, it seems that this approach has been only partially successful. In this article, we identify factors limiting the effective use of the new Directive; and, then using Poort's model of interactive legislation combined with an ethos of controversies, we analyse the potential of the Directive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Humankind draws important benefits from large‐scale ecological processes termed ecosystem services, yet the status of several of them is declining. Reliable monitoring methods are essential for tracking the status of ecosystem services. Predation is the mainstay of natural pest control, a key ecosystem service. We used green plasticine caterpillars to monitor predation pressure, and to obtain baseline data on predator activity in transgenic Bt versus non‐Bt maize fields in Old and New World countries. Predation pressure was measured at ground and canopy levels using an identical, small‐plot experimental design in four European countries (Denmark, Slovakia, Romania and Italy) and Argentina. Total predation rate in maize was 11.7%d−1 (min. 7.2%d−1 in Argentina, max. 29.0%d−1 in Romania). Artificial caterpillars were attacked both by invertebrates (mostly chewing insects with 42.0% of the attack marks, and ants with 7.1%, but also predatory and parasitoid wasps, spiders and slugs), and vertebrates (small mammals 25.5%, and birds 20.2%). Total predation at ground level (15.7%d−1) was significantly higher than in maize canopies (6.0%d−1) in all countries, except Argentina. We found no significant differences between predator pressure in Bt versus non‐Bt maize plots. The artificial caterpillar method provided comparable, quantitative data on predation intensity, and proved to be suitable for monitoring natural pest control. This method usefully expands the existing toolkit by directly measuring ecological function rather than structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transgenic maize expressing the Bacillus thuringiensis ( Bt ) insecticidal crystal (Cry1Ab) protein is poisonous to lepidopterans including the European Corn Borer ( Ostrinia nubilalis ). In many European countries, commercial cultivation of Bt maize is not allowed. One major reason is the potential variation of the environmental risk across different biogeographical regions. The aim of this study was to collect data about soil nematode communities as bioindicators of unintended effects across geographically diverse maize growing regions in Europe by sampling field sites in Denmark, Slovakia, and Sweden during 2013–2014, and in Spain during 2013. DKC3872YG ( Bt maize line MON810) and its near-isogenic line DKC3871 were grown at the sites in Slovakia, Denmark, and Sweden and hybrids DKC6451YG ( Bt maize line MON810) and its near-isogenic line DKC6450 were cultivated at the site in Spain. Dominating nematode genera in the maize fields regardless of the field site or maize variants were bacterial feeders Rhabditis, Acrobeloides ; root-fungal feeders Filenchus ; fungal feeders Aphelenchoides, Aphelenchus ; and omnivores Eudorylaimus . A significant effect of the field site location on the total nematode abundance, nematode abundance in trophic groups, diversity of nematode genera, and ecological and functional nematode indices was detected. Significant annual variation was found in the Plant parasite and Structure indices. There were significant differences in the abundances of omnivores and root-fungal feeders and in the Maturity, Channel, and Enrichment indices between Bt and non- Bt maize plots in Denmark in 2013, and in the abundance of fungal feeders in Sweden (2013). On the other hand, no difference was found between the Bt and non- Bt plots at the sites in Spain and Slovakia or at any of the sites in 2014. The effect of the field site location and season on the soil nematode community was more pronounced than that of the Bt genetic modification. We conclude that Bt maize had only a limited or no effect on soil nematode communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Crop yield improvements need to accelerate to avoid future food insecurity. Outside Europe, genetically modified (GM) crops for herbicide- and insect-resistance have been transformative in agriculture; other traits have also come to market. However, GM of yield potential and stress resilience has yet to impact on food security. Genes have been identified for yield such as grain number, size, leaf growth, resource allocation, and signaling for drought tolerance, but there is only one commercialized drought-tolerant GM variety. For GM and genome editing to impact on yield and resilience there is a need to understand yield-determining processes in a cell and developmental context combined with evaluation in the grower environment. We highlight a sugar signaling mechanism as a paradigm for this approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Commission last week proposed making it easier to study and commercialize gene-edited plants, engineered to have beneficial traits such as resistance to climate change, diseases, and pests. Like the current rules, the draft law prohibits gene-edited plants in organic agriculture and requires gene-edited seeds to be labeled. [Extracted from the article]

Field trails are indispensable for the scientific analysis of risks and potential benefits of genetically modified plants (GMP). The dramatic reduction of field trials in the European Union (EU) coincides with increasing safety demands, decreases in funding, and changes in the European directives. In parallel, opposition from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) has grown, and public acceptance has decreased. The cultivation of events approved by the EU is still allowed in principle, nevertheless, at least in Germany, there is a de facto moratorium on cultivation. In Switzerland, where development was much more hesitant compared to Germany, field trials are now possible, and a protected site has been established by the government. Public acceptance for scientific trials in Switzerland has risen, despite the continued moratorium on the cultivation based on a referendum. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] The ex-ante adoption and impact of herbicide tolerant maize in Europe is modelled. [•] Scenarios include different herbicide programs to address possible weed resistance. [•] The model predicts high economic benefits of GMHT maize for most EU farmers. [•] Environmental impacts are not straightforward positive and vary across countries. [•] Guidelines are required to assure a sustainable introduction of the technology. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: Since 1996, genetically modified (GM) crops have been grown on an ever increasing area worldwide. Maize producing a Cry protein from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) was among the first GM crops released for commercial production and it is the only GM crop currently cultivated in Europe. A major part of the regulatory process that precedes the commercial release of GM crops is the environmental risk assessment. Because Bt maize is modified to produce insecticidal proteins, potential interactions with non-target organisms are a major area of concern to be addressed in the risk assessment. In particular, beneficial arthropods that provide important agro-ecological services, such as pollination, decomposition, and biological control are the focus. This systematic review will evaluate if the growing of Bt maize changes abundance or ecological function of non-target animals compared to the growing of conventional, non-GM maize. The review will be limited to plot or field level data including field margins. Potential cropping system effects and off-field effects will not be addressed. Bt maize will be compared to conventional maize either untreated or treated with chemical insecticides. Methods: Stakeholders from academia, competent authorities, industry, and civil society organizations were given the opportunity to comment on the review question and an earlier draft of this review protocol. Keyword searches will be conducted in a range of abstracting and full text literature databases. Retrieved records will be screened against a set of inclusion criteria, first on title and abstract level, then on full text level. Selected studies will be evaluated for risks of bias (quality assessment). Data on field/plot characteristics, maize cultivars, insecticide treatments, non-target animal taxa, sampling methods, and response variables of populations and ecological functions will be extracted. Meta-analysis will be conducted using the effect size estimator Hedge's d on a range of comparisons and including sensitivity analysis. The review process will be fully documented in CADIMA, an open access online data portal for evidence synthesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] Highlights with relation to the manuscript ‘Stacked GM (genetically modified) events: to assess or not to assess? [•] Rethink the current food/feed safety assessment of stacked GM events in Europe. [•] Safety assessment procedures should adjust to new developments in plant breeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on decisions of courts related to genetically-engineered (GE) crops in Europe. It discusses a case of Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc. related to selling of genetically engineered maize (MON810) in which the European Court of Justice (ECJ) supported the company. It focuses on the company's case involving the European Commission and agricultural firm Monsanto SAS' case against the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries of France.

This article examines the way in which public controversies affect regulatory science. It describes the controversy that unfolded in Europe around the use of the ninety-day rat-feeding tests for the risk assessment of genetically modified (GM) plants. This type of test had been criticized for almost two decades by toxicologists, nongovernmental organizations, and industry alike for its inability to capture the specific health effects of GM plants. But GM risk assessment experts showed great reluctance to move toward a more systematic use of other tests, such as chronic two-year studies or toxicogenomic techniques, and made sure that official guidance continues to recommend the use of the ninety-day rat-feeding study. The article shows that these tactics of standardization are a defining feature of regulatory science, and a resource for toxicity experts to defend their authority and credibility against competing expertises that arise during controversies. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In Europe the use of genetically modified (GM) crops in food production has so far failed to gain wide public approval. Ordinary people are concerned about issues not covered by the existing regulation, including usefulness and unnaturalness. In response, particularly to worries about unnaturalness, biotechnologists have suggested that inserted genes should derive only from the plant itself, or from close relatives. This paper examines public perceptions of these so-called 'cisgenic crops' and asks whether the public shares the idea that they are less unnatural and thus more acceptable than transgenic plants. Using five focus group interviews, we identified five lines of argument about naturalness with a bearing on the assessment of cisgenic crops as well as GM crops in general. The paper concludes that, depending on perceptions of naturalness, some people would agree that cisgenic crops are more acceptable than their transgenic counterparts. The finding that ordinary people value different aspects of naturalness may be relevant to a broader audience than just those interested in gene technology. It cautions against a simplistic interpretation of what counts as 'natural'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] We highlight paradoxes in current EU agricultural policies, specifically on GE products, which are contradictory and irrational. [•] There is a huge discrepancy in EU regulations on home-grown and imported GE products. [•] We provide case studies to show how EU agricultural policies are damaging the European and International economy. [•] We show how research and innovation is being stifled and driven abroad. [•] We recommend a bottom-up revision of the regulatory framework governing GE crops. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Regulatory frameworks on genetically modified crops present several differences, according to the specific procedures they take to deal with what they consider to be risks. Some of these differences have been studied between the United States and Europe, but there are other scenarios and subjects that may also be involved. Argentina not only has one of the major land areas devoted to transgenic agriculture, but it also has one of the first regulatory agencies in the region. Nevertheless, its regulatory policies towards genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have several differences with some international regulatory policies, such as the precautionary approach, the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety and the labeling of food derived from GM crops. In order to understand this position, we analyze the development and function of GMOs'' regulatory framework in Argentina, comparing it with Europe and showing how commercial interests in agriculture may explain each regulatory approach. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Seen the growing number of genetically modified (GM) crops being developed, the need for cost- and time-effective detection methods is increasing to enable continuing the necessary effective control on food and feed products. This need can be achieved by performing an intensive screening combined with decision support tools like the CoSYPS matrix which permits reducing the number of events to be identified. To allow an extra covering power of the CoSYPS and to be able to include new EU-authorised GM events, two new SYBRGreen real-time PCR (qPCR) methods targeting two promoter sequences (pNOS and pFMV) were developed. These methods were validated using acceptance parameters such as the specificity, sensitivity and repeatability. In addition, the methods were transferred to a second laboratory, namely the Institute for Health and Consumer Protection, to test the reproducibility. Furthermore, the applicability and practicability of the methods were tested by using proficiency test samples. The two methods allow a specific and sensitive detection of the targets in food and feed samples and can be used efficiently in different laboratories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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In 2007, a genetically modified herbicide tolerant (GMHT) sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.) tolerant against glyphosate, a commonly used broad spectrum herbicide, was commercialised in the USA and Canada. The speed of uptake of GMHT sugar beet by farmers has no precedent. While it took the hitherto most successful GM crop in the USA 15 years to reach an adoption rate of 95%, GMHT sugar beet achieved this figure after only 2 years. This paper traces the history of GMHT sugar beet which started at the European continent and describes the economic and environmental impact of its introduction in the USA. The results suggest that the rapid adoption is economically sound with adopter rents averaging $257/ha. Moreover the adoption has a high potential to reduce the environmental impact of sugar beet production. Will these experiences bring GMHT sugar beet back to its roots in Europe? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evaluation of transgenic plants by ethics committees in Europe and Canada: what degrees of freedom? This paper examines from an ethical point of view the way some ethics committees in Europe and Canada evaluate transgenic plants. After analysing their reports and interviews with members sitting on these committees, we show the very relative independence of their evaluation from the scientists' position and political and industrial interests. We present here what an ethical evaluation of transgenic plants should be. Our study indicates that the more these committees develop an ethical reflection, the more they keep their distance from the social acceptability of genetically modified plants and the more they manage to avoid that scientific rationality replaces ethical argumentation - that is to say, the more they manage to incorporate scientific data in an ethical reflection. Some of these committees are even captive of a techno-scientific strategy which values research susceptible of making economic benefits, but prevents them from making an ethical evaluation. We show that making an independent ethical evaluation demands not to focus on the sole question of risks. All changes in the world associated with the development and marketing of transgenic plants should be examined. Ethical reflection also needs to be linked to an epistemological reflection in order to reinforce it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this article is to compile the destruction of GMO trials from academic or governmental research institutes in Europe, in a factual manner and to highlight their main characteristics. About 80 acts of vandalism against academic or governmental research on GMOs are identified, mainly in 4 countries; namely France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. Examples are also provided for Italy and Belgium. The general conclusions that can be drawn from these acts are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transgenic plants that are being developed for commercial cultivation must be tested under field conditions to monitor their effects on surrounding wildlife and conventional crops. Developers also use this opportunity to evaluate the performance of transgenic crops in a typical environment, although this is a matter of commercial necessity rather than regulatory compliance. Most countries have adapted existing regulations or developed new ones to deal specifically with transgenic crops and their commodities. The European Union (EU) is renowned, or perhaps notorious, for having the broadest and most stringent regulations governing such field trials in the world. This reflects its nominal adherence to the precautionary approach, which assumes all transgenic crops carry an inherent risk. Therefore, field trials in the EU need to demonstrate that the risk associated with deploying a transgenic crop has been reduced to the level where it is regarded as acceptable within the narrowly defined limits of the regulations developed and enforced (albeit inconsistently) by national and regional governments, that is, that there is no greater risk than growing an equivalent conventional crop. The involvement of national and regional competent authorities in the decision-making process can add multiple layers of bureaucracy to an already-intricate process. In this review, we use country-based case studies to show how the EU, national and regional regulations are implemented, and we propose strategies that could increase the efficiency of regulation without burdening developers with further unnecessary bureaucracy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Futuribles is the property of Futuribles SARL and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Futuribles is the property of Futuribles SARL and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The assessment of the impacts of growing genetically modified (GM) crops remains a major political and scientific challenge in Europe. Concerns have been raised by the evidence of adverse and unexpected environmental effects and differing opinions on the outcomes of environmental risk assessments (ERA). The current regulatory system is hampered by insufficiently developed methods for GM crop safety testing and introduction studies. Improvement to the regulatory system needs to address the lack of well designed GM crop monitoring frameworks, professional and financial conflicts of interest within the ERA research and testing community, weaknesses in consideration of stakeholder interests and specific regional conditions, and the lack of comprehensive assessments that address the environmental and socio-economic risk assessment interface. To address these challenges, we propose a European Network for systematic GMO impact assessment (ENSyGMO) with the aim directly to enhance ERA and post-market environmental monitoring (PMEM) of GM crops, to harmonize and ultimately secure the long-term socio-political impact of the ERA process and the PMEM in the EU. These goals would be achieved with a multi-dimensional and multi-sector approach to GM crop impact assessment, targeting the variability and complexity of the EU agro-environment and the relationship with relevant socio-economic factors. Specifically, we propose to develop and apply methodologies for both indicator and field site selection for GM crop ERA and PMEM, embedded in an EU-wide typology of agro-environments. These methodologies should be applied in a pan-European field testing network using GM crops. The design of the field experiments and the sampling methodology at these field sites should follow specific hypotheses on GM crop effects and use state-of-the art sampling, statistics and modelling approaches. To address public concerns and create confidence in the ENSyGMO results, actors with relevant specialist knowledge from various sectors should be involved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Opinion in Africa over the use of genetically modified crops for food has been divided, honed by more than a decade of arguments in Europe and elsewhere.1 Fortunately, the perceived image of a passive Africa in this game is changing rapidly with clear positions on how to harness modern biotechnology. This article examines the status of biosafety regulation across Africa, pertinent challenges and the extent to which regulation fosters or constrains the development of agricultural biotechnology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modern biotechnology has gradually attracted ever greater interest over the past four decades, from ever-widening communities across the world--from academic scientists, of course, and then from industrialists, journalists, medical specialists, agricultural practitioners, environmental "experts," economists, trading companies--and, so far as it concerns regulation, above all from political interests whose product is indeed legislation. As the interests widened, conflicts developed: between departments, between sectors, between countries and between international agencies. The European Community made choices, bitterly contested; the battles on conducting and regulating the field release of GMOs (genetically modified organisms) were usually won--at least in Europe--by the environment ministries, often in conflict with agriculture and/or the research and science ministries. The result has been the construction over the past 30 y of an ever heavier regulatory burden on those who seek to develop and launch products based on the use of modern biotechnology. The pretense is labeled "the precautionary principle." No lives have been saved, but many jobs have been created in bureaucracies large and small around the world. So far as academia was concerned, their experiments and field trials were repeatedly wrecked by NGOs (non-governmental organizations) claiming thus to have saved mankind and the environment. This is a story of grave political failure in Europe with globally adverse consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Gesunde Pflanzen is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Abstract: The common osier (Salix viminalis L.) is one of the several hundred species of the genus Salix across the world and one of the several dozen representatives of this genus in Europe. It is also one of the Salix species which, owing to its immense biomass production potential may be the main source of renewable energy in the future. The interest in plant biomass production has been growing in recent years with emphasis on new, genetically modified and more productive cultivars of energy crops, including the osier. RAPD (random amplified polymorphic DNA) markers were used to determine the degree of genetic diversity and genetic similarity among 19 genotypes of common osier (Salix viminalis L.) from the collection of the Department of Plant Breeding and Seed Production in view of their suitability for energy production purposes. For further investigation, 38 primers generating stable band patterns from 60 tested arbitrary primers were selected. A total of 210 amplification products were obtained, of which 94% were polymorphic. The genetic similarity index of the studied forms ranged from 0.519 to 0.891. Nei''s genetic distance values were used to generate a dendrogram (UPGMA) of genetic distance between the investigated genotypes which is used to identify suitable forms for crossing and selecting input material for creative breeding. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The EU is currently struggling to implement coherent coexistence regulations on genetically modified (GM) and non-GM crops in all member states. While it stresses that any approach needs to be “proportionate to the aim of achieving coexistence”, very few studies have actually attempted to assess whether the proposed spatial ex ante coexistence regulations (SEACERs) satisfy this proportionality condition. In this article, we propose a spatial framework based on an existing landscape and introduce the concept of shadow factor as a measure for the opportunity costs induced by SEACERs. Our empirical findings led us to advance the proposition that flexible SEACERs based on pollen barriers are more likely to respect the proportionality condition than rigid SEACERs based on isolation distances. Particularly in early adoption stages, imposing rigid SEACERs may substantially slow down GM crop adoption. Our findings argue for incorporating a certain degree of flexibility into SEACERs by advising pollen barrier agreements between farmers rather than imposing rigid isolation distances on GM farmers. The empirical questions of proportionality and flexibility have been largely ignored in the literature on coexistence and provide timely information for EU policy makers. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Although there is a strong controversy regarding the introduction and commercialisation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in Europe, GM maize has been sown in Spain since 1998. Stakeholders'' positions on the role that GMOs play in trends of the state of agriculture and environment in Catalonia are analysed. The application of the Driving forces –Pressures – State – Impact – Responses (DPSIR) framework in this case study highlights its potential for organising and structuring information. However, the model can be ambiguous when used as an analytical tool in value-laden complex situations. Thus, GM agriculture is sometimes seen as a pressure on the agro-environment and sometimes as a modernising response to an economic and environmental crisis. A redefinition of the DPSIR categories is proposed, aiming to reflect on these situations by better acknowledging different legitimate perspectives and narratives. This is done, on the one hand, by allowing alternative descriptions of causal chains and, on the other hand, by taking into consideration social and political aspects besides the relationship between economics and environmental spheres. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The author discusses various issues concerning genetically engineered crops that are being cultivated in the U.S. and Europe. He claimed that each genetically engineered plant variety is associated with unique issues that should be noted on a case-to-case basis. He argued that genetically engineered plants are needed in order to address the environmental problems associated with traditional and organic agriculture. The author added that although people oppose genetically engineered foods, such technology will continue to prosper.

The genetic modification 'ac2' is based on the insertion and expression of ac2 gene, originally found in seeds of amaranth (Amaranthus caudatus), into the genome of potatoes (Solanum tuberosum). The purpose of the present study is to develop a PCR method for the detection of the mentioned genetically modified potatoes in various foodstuffs. The method was used to test twenty different potato-based products; none of them was positive for the genetic modification 'ac2'. The European Union legislation requires labelling of products made of or containing more than 0.9 % of genetically modified organisms. The genetic modification 'ac2' is not allowed on the European Union market. For that reason it is suitable to have detection methods, not only for the approved genetic modifications, but also for the 'unknown' ones, which could still occur in foodstuffs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

1. It is well established that pollen-mediated gene flow among natural plant populations depends on a complex interaction between the spatial distribution of pollen sources and the short- and long-distance components of pollen dispersal. Despite this knowledge, spatial isolation strategies proposed in Europe to ensure the harvest purity of conventional crops are based on distance from the nearest genetically modified (GM) crop and on empirical data from two-plot experiments. Here, we investigate the circumstances under which the multiplicity of pollen sources over the landscape should be considered in strategies to contain GM crops. 2. We simulated pollen dispersal over eighty 6 × 6 km simulated landscapes differing in field characteristics and in amount of GM and conventional maize. Pollen dispersal was modelled either via a Normal Inverse Gaussian (NIG, currently used for European coexistence studies) or a bivariate Student (2Dt) kernel. These kernels differ in their amount of short- and long-distance dispersal. We used linear models to analyse the impact of local and landscape variables on impurity rates (i.e. proportion of seeds sired by pollen from a transgenic crop) in conventional fields and quantified their increase due to dispersal from other than the closest GM crops. 3. The average impurity rate over a landscape increased linearly with the proportion of GM maize over that landscape. The increase was twice as fast using the NIG kernel and was governed by the short-distance dispersal component. 4. Variation in impurity rates largely depended on the distance to the closest GM crop and the size of the receptor field. However, impurity rates were generally underestimated when only dispersal from the closest GM field was considered. 5. Synthesis and applications. Distance to the closest GM crop had most impact on impurity rates in conventional fields. However, impurity rates also depended on intermediate- to long-distance dispersal from distant GM crops. Therefore, isolation distances as currently defined will probably not allow long-term coexistence of GM and conventional crops, especially as the proportion of GM crops grown increases. We suggest strategies to account for this impact of long-distance dispersal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transgenic crops are the subject of lively debate and controversy. Despite such controversy, transgenic soybean has undergone a rapid expansion. Among various types of transgenic crops, herbicide-tolerant crops appear to many to be of limited interest, especially in Europe. Nonetheless, herbicide-tolerant crops are the most widely spread in the world. Indeed, glyphosate-tolerant soybean was notably the most cultivated transgenic plant in the world in 2006. In the USA 91% of soybean was transgenic in 2007. How can this particularly significant diffusion in the USA be explained, and what are its impacts? Such issues are addressed in this article, using surveys, studies of numerous statistical data and literature analysis. A first section underlines the importance of soybean in the current development of transgenic crops in the world, and the favourable context for their expansion in the USA. Then follows an analysis of the advantages and drawbacks of transgenic soybean for American farmers. Factors explaining the rapid diffusion of transgenic soybean are also analysed. A comparison of transgenic versus conventional soybean reveals that transgenic glyphosate-tolerant soybean allows both the simplification of weed control and greater work flexibility. Cropping transgenic soybean also fits well with conservation tillage. Transgenic soybean has an economic margin similar to conventional soybean, despite a higher seed cost. The next section describes the evolution of the use of herbicides with transgenic soybean, and some issues linked to the rapid increase in the use of glyphosate. At the beginning a smaller amount of herbicides was used, but this amount increased from 2002, though not steadily. Nonetheless, the environmental and toxicological impacts of pesticides do not only depend on the amounts applied. They also depend on the conditions of use and the levels of toxicity and ecotoxicity. The levels of ecotoxicity seem to have somewhat decreased. The success of transgenic soybeans for farmers has led to a higher use of glyphosate as a replacement for other herbicides, which has in turn led to a decline in its effectiveness. However, the issue here is not only genetic engineering in itself, but rather the management and governance of this innovation. Finally, the prospects of transgenic soybean are addressed. Transgenic soybean with new traits should be placed on the market. The conclusion describes economic context of the development of the first transgenic crops. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many argue that transgenic technology will have wide-ranging implications for farmers in developing nations. A key concern is that competencies may be destroyed by predominantly foreign multinational transgenic technologies, exacerbating problems of social exclusion in the case of subsistence farmers. Conversely, those that fail to adopt the technology may become uncompetitive, particularly in commodity-based export markets. Drawing on interview data conducted in Brazil and supporting data collected in North America, Europe and China, we found that the impact of transgenic technology varies. It has less impact on farmers that adapt the products to their crop systems and environment, and greater negative implications for less formally educated subsistence farmers in consequence of both complexity and compatibility. Earlier attempts at industrializing agriculture through technological innovation led to vastly improved agricultural output and exports, but the benefits of productivity was not equitably distributed [D. Lee: , American Journal of Agricultural Economics 87(5), 1325–1334], nor was it designed to meet specific local environmental and socioeconomic farmer conditions, exacerbating social exclusion. Multinationals attempting to introduce transgenic technology without considering the broader social and ethical implications will invite resistance. We discuss the implications for policy makers, multinationals and small-scale farmers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers world news briefs related to forest management. The Finnish MELA system, a decision support tool that analyzes wood production under various management regimes, was continuously developed by a team led by Professor Tuula Nuutinen at Metla. The EFI has issued a statement that supports the research on genetically modified trees. The Danish research center Forest & Landscape stated that the propagation of bark beetles which damaged spruce trees in Denmark is under control.

The article presents the Committee of the Regions' views on the Commission Communication and the European Parliament Report regarding the implementation of national measures on the coexistence of genetically modified crops with conventional and organic farming. It focuses on the issues to consider in the correct implementation of farming systems and protection of agricultural biodiversity, including, inadequate monitoring, inadequate risk-assessment procedure, and the inadequacy of seed discipline.

In the hopes of lessening the current reliance on soil insecticides, developing a viable alternative for transgenic maize hybrids, and providing sustainable options for Europe, researchers recently have been developing novel maize lines that exhibit resistance and/or tolerance to corn rootworm larvae. Here we report the results of a 2-year field experiment in a northern growing region assessing the resistance and tolerance of 10 experimental synthetic maize populations selected for varying levels of damage from western corn rootworm larvae, Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte (Col.: Chrysomelidae) and four maize hybrids. Maize non-preference, antibiosis and tolerance to rootworms was evaluated using previously established methods, including: the Iowa 1–6 root damage rating scale, root fresh weight, compensatory root growth ratings and adult rootworm emergence. Among the experimental synthetic maize populations, BS29-11-01 was the most susceptible, and had a mean root damage rating that was greater than the highly susceptible maize hybrid B37 × H84. This line also had the lowest mean root fresh weight and one of the lowest mean compensatory root growth ratings. In contrast, CRW8-3 appeared to be tolerant to western corn rootworms, and had the lowest mean root damage rating, which was comparable with that of the non-transgenic hybrid DeKalb® 46-26. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In March 2004, the U.K. government announced its intention to grant limited authorization for the growing of commercial genetically modified (GM) crops. This article reviews the potential liabilities that may arise from GM cropping, for environmental damage and for economic losses claimed by non-GM producers. It considers the application of the European Community (EC) Environmental Liability Directive of 2004 to genetically modified organisms (GMO) releases, and the proposed statutory scheme for the coexistence of GM and non-GM agriculture in England and Wales. It also examines the application of the common law of nuisance to the release of GMOs and considers the relevant case law of the English courts. Although there will be a residual role for liability at common law following the establishment of a statutory coexistence scheme, the article highlights a number of formidable problems facing attempts to establish claims for liability arising from GMO releases at common law. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Why do corporations develop technologies which can be associated with the generation of various environmental risks and how are the technologies that they develop governed by factors within and around firms? The authors examine the factors that have motivated and guided technological innovation, based on an examination of multinational companies developing genetically modified (GM) crops for the European market. The analysis is based on an inherently interdisciplinary approach to the study of innovation, which incorporates factors that are governed endogenously through the processes within companies (that is, strategic decisionmaking) and exogenously through interactions between firms and their external constituents (that is, government policies and regulations, and stakeholder and public perspectives and engagements). It is found that the introduction of GM technologies in Europe has been shaped significantly by public perception and societal reactions. It is also found that the aspects of industry strategies which contributed most to the course of European public opposition to GM crops were: (a) the choice of first-generation GM products; (b) interactions between pesticide-product and biotechnology-product strategies in different companies, and industry's efforts to present their sector and its products as contributing to sustainable development; (c) cultural and world-view differences between companies; and (d) company responses to European biotechnology policies and risk regulation. It is demonstrated that actions which seem rational to individual actors (corporations, governments, public interest groups) can have counterintuitive, and often counterproductive, outcomes in the longer term and when considered from the perspective of interactions within broader governance processes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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1. Debate continues regarding the ecological impacts of genetically modified (GM) crops and their coexistence with non-GM crops in Europe. In this debate, quantitative predictions of gene dispersal by pollen are necessary, and as a result numerous plot-to-plot gene flow experiments have been performed with various crops. However, plot-to-plot cross-pollination rates (CPR) depend on spatial configuration of plots, implying that (i) they are difficult to compare among experiments and (ii) functions directly fitted on CPR data are inappropriate for predictions in other spatial contexts. 2. Modelling pollen dispersal via an individual dispersal function (IDF) circumvents these problems by accounting for spatial designs. We detail for oilseed rape how this approach can be used to both estimate an IDF from field data and predict CPR between two neighbouring fields of various sizes and shapes. Predictions were used to investigate the sensitivity of CPR to the family of IDF, the uncertainty in parameter estimates and the effects of field dimensions and isolation distances. 3. We fitted a range of families of IDF, including several types of tails, on previously published data. The best IDF was a fat-tailed power-law function, meaning frequent long-distance dispersal. 4. The choice of IDF appeared crucial when predicting CPR between fields, occasionally being even more important than the distance between fields. Width of the source field and depth of the recipient field were next in importance. When approximated CPR were calculated without considering field dimensions, using distance between field centres gave better performance than field margins. 5. Synthesis and applications. This study demonstrates the value of IDF for quantitative predictions of pollen flow in variable spatial configurations. A spatially explicit model of agro-ecosystems used to define management rules for the commercial release of GM crops in Europe already employs IDF but underestimates long-distance dispersal for oilseed rape. These new parameter estimates will refine the performance of these models. Moreover, the detailed guidelines for estimating an IDF should encourage such statistical analysis of other dispersal data, enabling comparisons of dispersal data obtained for different environments and species and providing new IDF for management models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract In regulatory practice, the principle of precaution is hardly linked to the ideal of sustainable development. In this article, we argue that it should be. We argue that sustainable development is the sense of an ethics of co-responsibility, while precaution is the attitude needed to realize this sense. From this perspective, we comment on some regulatory practices within the European context regarding authorization requests for deliberate releases of genetically modified crops and show some problems that are popping up there, for example, the difficulties in interpreting the meaning of harm” (and of benefit”), the symptomatic gap between regulatory rule and political practice. Finally, we suggest that, in order to respond to such problems, precaution should find an appropriate translation in the fields of both research and innovation policy, of authorization policy and of economic policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focuses on the current perspectives on the production of pharmaceuticals in transgenic plants in Europe. Technological development on several levels of molecular farming and the use of different crops as production platforms; Modifications made to alter the structural and functional properties of the product; Strategies to improve the recombinant protein yield in plants.

Mandatory risk assessment is intended to reassure concerned citizens and introduce reason into the heated European controversies on genetically modified crops and food. The authors, examining a case of risk assessment of genetically modified oilseed rape, claim that the new European legislation on risk assessment does nothing of the sort and is not likely to present an escape from the international deadlock on the use of genetic modification in agriculture and food production. The new legislation is likely to stimulate the kind of emotive reactions it was intended to prevent. In risk assessment exercises, scientific uncertainty is turned into risk, expressed in facts and figures. Paradoxically, this conveys an impression of certainty, while value-disagreement and conflicts of interest remain hidden below the surface of factuality. Public dialogue and negotiation along these lines are rendered impossible. The only option left to critics is to resort to claims of fear and to call for new risk assessments to be performed, on and on again. Science is allowing itself to be abused by accepting the burden of proof in matters more suited to reflection and negotiation. The specific challenge to science would be to take care of itself – rethinking the role and the limitations of science in a social context, and, thereby gaining the strength to fulfill this role and to enter into dialogue with the rest of society. Scientific communities appear to be obvious candidates for prompting reflection and dialogue on this issue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]