RECENT NEWS USDA Annual Acreage Report Shows Acreage Up for Biotech Corn, Cotton and Soy The National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) released the results of the June 2002 Agricultural Survey, which showed that biotech corn acreage in the U. S. was up from 26% in 2001 to 34% in 2002; biotech soybean acreage was up from 68% in 2001 to 75% in 2002; and biotech cotton was up from 69% in 2001 to 71% in 2002. The survey is based on randomly selected farmers across the United States. Farmers were asked if they planted biotech corn, soybeans or cotton that was resistant to herbicides, insects, or both. The complete 41-page report (biotech acreage section on pages 24-25) is available at: http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/reports/nassr/field/pcp-bba/acrg0602.pdf New CAST Report on Environmental Safety and Benefits of Biotech Crops The Council for Agricultural Science and Technology (CAST) released a comprehensive report on June 25, 2002: "Comparative Environmental Impacts of Biotechnology-derived and Traditional Soybean, Corn, and Cotton Crops." CAST researchers reviewed and analyzed the scientific literature to compare the potential environmental impacts of biotech-derived versus conventional crops and address questions regarding the potential environmental impacts of commercially available biotech soybean, corn and cotton crops. The study was based on nine criteria including changes in pesticide use patterns, soil management and conservation tillage, crop weediness, gene flow and outcrossing, pest resistance, pest population shifts, non-target and beneficial organisms, land use efficiency/productivity, and human exposure. According to the report, "A comprehensive review of the scientific literature supports the conclusion that overall the currently commercialized biotechnology-derived soybean, corn, and cotton crops yield environmental benefits. Furthermore, a critical analysis of the literature supports the idea that biotechnology-derived soybean, corn, and cotton pose no environmental concerns unique to or different from those historically associated with conventionally developed crop varieties." The Executive Summary, Full Report, and additional background information are available at: http://www.cast-science.org New NCFAP Report Highlights Major Impacts of Biotech Crops in Pest Management A report released by the National Center for Food and Agricultural Policy (NCFAP) affirms the key benefits of biotech crops. The report titled, "Plant Biotechnology: Current and Future Impact for Improving Pest Management in U. S. Agriculture – An Analysis of 40 Case Studies," is the most comprehensive study done to date documenting the economic and environmental impact of biotech crops, including a significant reduction in the use of pesticides on food and fiber crops. The report, which covers 40 case studies of 27 crops was commissioned by a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation, and additional funding from the Biotechnology Industry Organization, CropLife America, Council for Biotechnology Information, Grocery Manufacturers of America and Monsanto. According to the report, widespread adoption of biotechnology in major commodity crops in the U. S. has resulted in significant yield increases, significant savings for growers and significant reductions in pesticide use. Leonard Gianessi, NCFAP Senior Research Associate and senior author of the report stated: "As opposed to previous studies, our work goes well beyond the traditional agricultural commodities and evaluates the impact biotechnology can have on a much wider range of crops, including fruits and vegetables. In fact, the study shows every region in the country stands to benefit from the development of the new varieties evaluated in this study." The Executive Summary, Full Report and Individual Case Studies are available at: http://www.ncfap.org American College of Nutrition Statement on Crop Biotechnology The American College of Nutrition (CAN) has released a position statement on biotechnology. According to the statement: "Substantial valid scientific evidence exists establishing the safety of crops developed via biotechnology. Numerous national and international scientific and regulatory organizations have reviewed this evidence and concluded that crops developed via biotechnology post no unique safety concerns compared to crops developed via traditional breeding&ldots;The American College of Nutrition recognizes the potential of biotechnology to improve the size and reliability of crop yields and encourages its use to develop crops that benefit countries of the developing world." The ACN is a not-for-profit society composed of over 1,200 professional nutritionists. According to Dr. Stanley Wallach, Executive Director of the College, "The College is releasing this statement at this time to coincide with publication of the June 2002 issue of the Journal of the American College of Nutrition (JACN), which is devoted entirely to the subject of crop biotechnology." Abstracts of the scientific articles in JACN are available on the web at: http://www.am-coll-nutr.org/jacn/vol_21/no_3,Suppl/toc.htm BIOTECH REPORTS New Report from the European Commission's Joint Research Center A report from the European Commission reviews scenarios for the co-existence of biotech, conventional and organic crops in European agriculture. The report was commissioned by the Agriculture Directorate-General with the objectives to identify sources and estimate levels of adventitious presence of biotech crops in non-biotech crops at the farm level, to explore and assess modifications of farming practices that could minimize the adventitious presence of biotech crops in non-biotech crops below the proposed labeling thresholds, to develop possible monitoring systems needed for verification, and estimate costs of relevant changes. The report is available at: http://www.jrc.cec.eu.int/default.asp?sIdSz=our_work&sIdStSz=focus_on UNEP Biosafety Module Available The second module to provide a practical guide for countries developing national biosafety frameworks under the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP-GEF) Project on Development of National Biosafety Frameworks is now available. The module covers the surveys and inventories in different sectors pertaining to biosafety and biotechnology within a country. The module is available at: http://www.unep.ch/biosafety/ToolkitBSF1.pdf or contact biosafety@unep.ch for more information. Declaration Issued at World Food Summit At the World Food Summit held in Rome, Italy June 10-13, global leaders released a declaration renewing their commitment to accelerate the implementation of the World Food Summit Plan of Action. Included in the declaration (item number 25): "We call on the FAO in conjunction with CGIAR and other international research institutes to advance agricultural research and research into new technologies, including biotechnology. The introduction of tried and tested new technologies including biotechnology should be accomplished in a safe manner and adapted to local conditions to help improve agricultural productivity in developing countries. We are committed to study, share and facilitate the responsible use of biotechnology in addressing development needs." The complete declaration is available at: http://www.fao.org/DOCREP/MEETING/004/Y6948E.HTM BIOTECH PUBLICATIONS AND ADDITIONAL RESOURCES Website: Science and Sustainability A new website has been launched that is a section of the SciDev.Net website devoted to news and discussion on the topic "Science and Sustainability." The site will include news and opinion articles on the topic in addition to an open discussion forum intended to provide additional information. The site can be accessed via the homepage (http://www.scidev.net) or directly at: http://www.scidev.net/sustain History's Harvest: Where Food Comes From A documentary film produced by the American Society of Plant Biologist's (ASPB) Education Foundation is available in VHS and DVD formats. The film was developed to provide accurate information to the public on the importance of the use of plant biology to address world hunger and to educate the public on where food comes from. The film takes viewers from fields where crops are grown around the world into labs where research is conducted and into grocery stores. The film also includes interviews with farmers, restaurant owners, and leading international scientists. The Foundation is in the process of identifying distributors to bring the film to TV broadcast networks. The film is also available for educational use and for libraries. More information available on the ASPB site at: http://www.aspb.org/education/foundation/programs.cfm#TV Journal Articles Supplement "The Future of Food and Nutrition with Biotechnology" in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition June 2002, Volume 21, Number 3 Links to abstracts of the following ten articles in the June 2002 JACN Supplement are available at: http://www.am-coll-nutr.org/jacn/vol_21/no_3,Suppl/toc.htm M. Mackey. 2002. The Application of Biotechnology to Nutrition: An Overview. JACN 21(3): 157S-160S. S. K. Harlander. 2002. The Evolution of Modern Agriculture and Its Future with Biotechnology. JACN 21(3): 161S-165S. B. M. Chassy. 2002. Food Safety Evaluation of Crops Produced through Biotechnology. JACN 21(3): 166S-173S. C. R. Santere et al. 2002. The Impact of Consumer Food Biotechnology Training on Knowledge and Attitude. JACN 21(3): 174S-177S. M. A. Grusak. 2002. Enhancing Mineral Content in Plant Food Products. JACN 21(3): 178S-183S. P. Lucca et al. 2002. Fighting Iron Deficiency Anemia with Iron-Rich Rice. JACN 21(3): 184S-190S. T. R. Rocheford et al. 2002. Enhancement of Vitamin E Levels in Corn. JACN 21(3): 191S-198S. R. Sévenier et al. 2002. Increased Production of Nutriments by Genetically Engineered Crops. JACN 21(3): 199S-204S. Q. L. et al. 2002. High-Oleic and High-Stearic Cottonseed Oils: Nutritionally Improved Cooking Oils Developed Using Gene Silencing. JACN 21(3): 205S-211S. S. Korban et al. 2002. Foods as Production and Delivery Vehicles for Human Vaccines. JACN 21(3): 212S-217S. B. Lönnerdal. 2002. Expression of Human Milk Proteins in Plants. JACN 21(3): 218S-221S. The Journal Nature – On-line Publications A series of articles available on-line from the journal Nature, provide overviews on the potential environmental impact of biotech crops. Visit the Nature site at: http://biotech.nature.com (direct links to the articles included in the June issue of Nature Volume 20 No. 6 are below ) Editorial: Going with the flow (p. 527) Link : http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nbt/journal/v20/n6/full/nbt0602-527.html&filetype=pdf S. Smyth et al. Liabilities and economics of transgenic crops (pp. 537-541) Link: http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nbt/journal/v20/n6/full/nbt0602-537.html&filetype=pdf A. Snow. Transgenic crops – why gene flow matters (p. 542) Link : http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nbt/journal/v20/n6/full/nbt0602-542.html&filetype=pdf R. Welsh et al. GM crops and the pesticide paradigm (pp. 548-549) Link : http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nbt/journal/v20/n6/full/nbt0602-548.html&filetype=pdf P. Dale et al. Potential for the environmental impact of transgenic crops (567-574) Link : http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nbt/journal/v20/n6/full/nbt0602-567.html&filetype=pdf P. Hale and N-H Chua. Excision of selectable marker genes from transgenic plants (575-580) Link : http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nbt/journal/v20/n6/full/nbt0602-575.html&filetype=pdf H. Daniell. Molecular strategies for gene containment in transgenic crops (581-586) Link : http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nbt/journal/v20/n6/full/nbt0602-581.html&filetype=pdf Additional Journal Articles Kimber, I. and R. J. Dearman. 2002. Approaches to Assessment of the Allergenic Potential of Novel Proteins in Food from Genetically Engineered Crops. Toxicol. Sci. 68:4-8. Magg, T. et al. 2002. Relationship between European corn borer resistance and concentration of mycotoxins produced by Fusarium spp. in grains of transgenic Bt maize hybrids, their isogenic counterparts, and commercial varieties. Plant Breeding 121: 146-154. Phipps, R. H. et al. 2002. Detection of transgenic DNA in milk from cows receiving herbicide tolerant (CP4EPSPS) soybean meal. Livestock Production Science 74: 269-271. Senior, I. J. and P. J. Dale. 2002. Herbicide-tolerant crops in agriculture: oilseed rape as a case study. Plant Breeding 121: 95-107. July 7-21 Plant Molecular Biology; Plymouth, NH; URL: http://www.grc.uri.edu/grc_home.htm July 21-25 2002 Joint Annual Meeting of the American Dairy Science Association and the American Society of Animal Science; Quebec, Canada; URL: http://www.fass.org/quebec02/ July 27-31 Annual Meeting of the American Phytopathological Society; Milwaukee, WI; URL: www.apsnet.org/ July 28-August 2 An International Short Course in Food Safety; Michigan State University; URL: http://www.iia.msu.edu/absp/ August 3-7 Plant Biology 2002; Denver, CO; URL: http://www.aspp.org/meetings/meetings.htm August 18-22 AusBiotech Annual Conference, 2002; Melbourne, Australia; URL: http://www.aba.asn.au September 1-4 BIOLAW 2002, Bridging the Gap between the Scientific and Legal Worlds; Bangkok, Thailand; URL: contact Dr. Tanit Changthavorn; E-mail: business@biotec.or.th September 15-18 ABIC 2002, Agbiotech-Cultivating Convergence; Saskatoon, Canada; URL: http://www.abic.net October 10-14 The 7th International Symposium on Biosafety of GMO's; Beijing, China; URL: http://www.worldbiosafety.net ©2001 ANBio - Associação Nacional de Biossegurança. 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