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June 1999

European Bioindustries Call For A Transparent Approval System For Genetically Modified Products
25/6/99, EuropaBio
EuropaBio calls for the creation of a European centralised system for the approval of biotechnology products, similar to the European authority which gives approvals for pharmaceutical products, and which European consumers can refer to.

Bioscience Is Our Future
24/6/99, The Journal (Newcastle, UK)
With progress at an unprecedented rate, we are at the beginning of a revolution so profound that all of our lives will be touched forever. So what is biotechnology? Well surprisingly, it is arguably the oldest profession [or one of them] since it concerns man utilising living organisms for its own benefit.

ASA Confirms The Natural Variability Of Isoflavones In Soybeans
23/6/99, American Soybean Association
ASA believes the Lappe study confirms what soybean experts already know well—that isoflavone components in soybeans are highly variable and well characterized in scientific literature. This natural variability is similar to the variability of micro-nutrients in any crop, and is greatly influenced by environmental factors.

A Factsheet: Health And Nutrition Benefits Of Soybeans, And The Role Of Isoflavones/Phytoestrogens
22/6/99, Monsanto Company
Like protein found in animal products, soybean protein is "complete" - meaning that it contains all eight essential amino acids needed for human health. Roundup Ready soybeans have been shown to be the same as conventional soybeans in over 400 seed and processed fraction composition qualities, and confirmed as safe and nutritious in a series of animal feeding studies.

Residues In Roundup Ready Soya Lower Than Conventional Soya
22/6/99, Monsanto Company
Recent allegations of large increases in the use of weed killers on GM crops are wrong and distort the facts. Conventional soya uses a cocktail of different weed killers and independent research confirms that the total amount of weed killer required for Roundup Ready soya is between 10% and 40% less than the amount of weed killers used in conventional soya.

Bt Corn: Environmental Safety And The Monarch Butterfly
22/6/99, Monsanto Company
The May 20 issue of the journal Nature reports on a laboratory study that asserts a negative impact of milkweed dusted with pollen from Bt corn on the growth the Monarch butterfly. This study provides interesting information, but reflects a situation very different than that actually prevalent in the natural environment. The principal author of this laboratory study has cautioned against drawing conclusions until more research and data have been collected and studied.

Who's Afraid?
19/6/99, The Economist
The consumer furore over genetically modified foods threatens to undermine both this new technology and the credibility of the agencies that regulate it.

Food For Thought
19/6/99, The Economist
Public hostility to the genetic modification of crops risks slowing down the development of a potentially important technology-which is why more must be done to reassure consumers.

Smith Says...
Farming Opinion From Essex-Based Guy Smith
18/6/99, Arable Farming
The manner is which the GMO debate has unraveled over the last 12 months has left me gobsmacked. Yet again as farmers we have failed to have any input into a debate that affects our livelihood. Unbelievably, it would seem that as a nation genetically-modified-food can be sold to British consumers but cannot be produced by British farmers.

Prof Burke Answers Prince Charles' 10 Questions Trials
14/6/99, University of Oxford
Prof Derek Burke, a leading voice in the debate on genetically-modified foods, has challenged the Prince of Wales' views on GM crops. Burke, a former chairman of the Government's Advisory Committee on Novel Foods and Processes, did so because he felt "there had been an avalanche of emotion and no real debate." Below are his responses to the 10 questions which were posed by the Prince of Wales.

Farmer Offers Land For GM Crop Trials
14/6/99, Thriplow Farms Ltd.
Unless trials are carried out, we shall never know what effects GM crops will have on the environment. That is why I am today inviting any bona fide plant breeder to use my farm to carry out properly organised trials on GM crops. Only by doing this will I - and every other farmer - ever hope to know the answers.

Monsanto Statement re Appeal Against Mr Justice Klevan's Decision
9/6/99, Monsanto Press Release
GenetiX Snowball say their acts of destruction are justified in the public interest. However, this is not about the commercialisation of GM crops. The issue is simply whether protest groups should be allowed to destroy other people's property in the name of their particular cause.

Green Genes
8/6/99, Christian Science Monitor
Having saluted Prince Charles in the past for his championing of unfairly threatened vegetable varieties, we feel it only fair to question his attack against agricultural genetics.

SCIMAC Statement Regarding Lushill Farm's Decision To Terminate GM Crop Trial
7/6/99, SCIMAC Press Release
SCIMAC regrets the personal decision taken by the Trustees of Lushill Farm, Hannington, Wiltshire, to discontinue the farm's involvement in the Government's programme of farm-scale evaluations of GM and non-GM crops.

Why We Can't Leave The Last Word On GMOs To Prince Charles
7/6/99, The Scotsman
Why anyone should believe that Prince Charles is a voice to listen to baffles me given his track record of being out of touch with reality , but let's go through his ten points, not to refute them, but to look at his concerns.

Moratorium On GM Food Would Perpetuate World Hunger
5/6/99, British Medical Journal
There is a compelling moral imperative to make genetically modified crops available to developing countries who want to use them to alleviate hunger and poverty, according to a report by the Nuffield Council on Bioethics.

Monsanto's Position On Gene Protection (Terminator) Technology
1/6/99, Monsanto Press Release
Monsanto supports and has called for a thorough, independent and comprehensive consideration and public discussion about gene protection technologies. Until such an examination has been conducted, Monsanto will not attempt to comercialise such gene protection technologies.