Archived News

December 2006

I’m Dreaming of a GM Christmas
29 December 2006 AgWeb
Scientists at Michigan Tech have experimented with trees that are specifically designed to produce qualities that are desirable in the manufacture of paper. Environmentalists should celebrate: It means more paper from fewer trees.

Brazil: Transgenic Cotton Ploughs Its Way Through Congress
29 December 2006 Inter Press Service via Checkbiotech.org
Now the draft law will go to the Senate, where it is almost certain that it will be passed, because there is an even more overwhelming majority in favour of genetically modified (GM) crops.

GM Bananas to Fight Wilt in Africa
29 December 2006 Vanguard (Nigeria)
One approach being explored is to transform farmer-preferred banana cultivars by introducing a resistance gene from sweet pepper.

GM Food Is Answer to Poverty and Hunger
29 December 2006 The Sunday Herald
PEOPLE ARE being urged by Scotland's new chief scientific adviser to embrace genetically modified (GM) food as an answer to poverty, hunger and toxic pollution.

Ethanol-Driven Vehicle Under Test in Malawi
28 December 2006 SciDev.Net
A Malawi project investigating ethanol-based fuels is conducting road tests on an ethanol-propelled vehicle.

CCMB, CSRI to Develop Prototype Database on Mulberry Genomics
28 December 2006 Financial Express
In a multi-centric project supported by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology (CCMB) is working on molecular screening of mulberry germplasm available in India.

China Breeds 55 New GM Cotton Strains
27 December 2006 Xinhua
Chinese scientists have developed 55 new genetically modified (GM) cotton strains, bringing economic returns of 16.8 billion yuan (2.1 billion U.S. dollars), said Vice Minister of Science and Technology Liu Yanhua.

Schwarzenegger Seeks $95M for Green Research
27 December 2006 Reuters
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed nearly $95 million in state spending on "clean" energy, biotech and nanotech research, the governor's office said on Wednesday.

China Breeds 55 New Genetically Modified Cotton Varieties
27 December 2006 Xinhua
Chinese scientists have developed 55 new genetically modified (GM) cotton strains, bringing economic returns of 16.8 billion yuan (2.1 billion U.S. dollars), said Vice Minister of Science and Technology Liu Yanhua.

Scientists Get OK for Engineered Peanuts
26 December 2006 AP via The New York Times
A leading industry group has given scientists the go-ahead to build genetically engineered peanuts that could be safer, more nutritious and easier to grow than their conventional version.

Agricultural Biotechnology: Monster, Marvel, or just Misunderstood?
23 December 2006 Public Service Review UK via AgBioWorld
With the likelihood of another three billion mouths to feed over the next four decades, we cannot afford the luxury of ignoring potentially useful new technologies.

Need for GM Crops Stressed
23 December 2006 NewIndPress
The food availability in the nation clearly indicates the need for genetically modified crops, said Prof S Kannaiyan, chairman, National Biodiversity Authority, Government of India.

Monsanto Company Sets Webcast and Analyst/Media Call For 2007 First-quarter Financial Results
22 December 2006 Monsanto
Monsanto Company (NYSE: MON) today announced it will issue the company's financial results for its fiscal year 2007 first quarter on Thursday, Jan. 4, 2007, prior to market open.

Monsanto Sales Representatives And Agronomists Prepared To Address Grower Concerns About Glyphosate-Resistant Giant Ragweed
22 December 2006 Monsanto
Monsanto sales representatives and field agronomists are prepared to assist Indiana and Ohio growers in managing and minimizing the risk of glyphosate-resistant giant ragweed.

Nigerians Stand to Gain a Lot from Biotechnology
22 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
Biotechnology could easily provide good jobs for millions of unemployed Nigerians under the biotechnology bioresources programs.

Field Trials on for Flood Resistant Rice
22 December 2006 Nine MSN
Flood resistant rice, developed this year with the help of genetic engineering, may reach farmers as soon as 2009, helping them cope with global warming and the extreme weather it is expected to bring.

Biotechnology in Agriculture – It May Not be Popular, but We May Need It in Europe
21 December 2006 GMO Safety, Federal Ministry of Education and Research, Germany
Using biotechnology may turn out to be as important as the other great revolutions in agriculture have been in past, so the topic needs to be taken seriously, as it is in many other parts of the world. We can watch and wait – but for how long can we tolerate the ongoing damage to our environment?

State Seeks Permission to Grow Trial Crops of GM Drought-Tolerant Wheat
21 December 2006 The Age
The first genetically modified wheat crop in Victoria's history could be growing within six months.

Biotechnology Delivers New Traits
21 December 2006 Farm Business Communications
A second wave of biotech-developed seed products is about to roll in. Look for new glyphosate-tolerant technology and a rush of novel output traits over the next 5 years.

Plenty for Farmers to Think About for 2007 Crop Planning
21 December 2006 Farm & Ranch Guide
When they talk to their seed dealers, they'll have many new hybrids in a variety of crops, with new traits, a variety of growing seasons and expectations for higher yields.

GMO Brings Back Good Insects in Philippine Farms
21 December 2006 Philippine Star
Many of the "good guys" in the insect world are back in Philippine farms. In corn fields, particularly. Credit for this encouraging development goes mainly to genetically modified organisms (GMO), specifically the so-called Bt corn.

New Dwarf Type May Be a Giant of Grape Research
21 December 2006 Agricultural Research Service, USDA
Really big things may come from Pixie, a very small grape recently released by the Agricultural Research Service (ARS).

Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics Report: Separation of GM grains is Manageable
20 December 2006 SeedQuest
While any requirement to keep non-GM grain separate from GM grains throughout the grain supply chain in Australia will impose costs on Australia’s grains industry, it appears that the costs are modest and manageable, according to a new research report by ABARE.

Conservatives to Announce $200-Million Biofuels Plan
20 December 2006 Canadian Press
The federal Conservative government is set to reveal another part of its clean-air strategy Wednesday with a $200-million plan to promote biofuels such as ethanol and biodiesel, industry sources say.

Boffins in Bid to Make Bananas Healthier
20 December 2006 NINE MSN
Queensland researchers are to undertake a program to genetically modify bananas in an attempt to help malnourished East Africans.

GM Files: Getting the Truth out There
20 December 2006 The Age
Worsening drought conditions around Australia have brought into sharp focus the need for new technologies to meet the challenge of global warming. The indisputable reality is that we cannot afford the indulgence of ignoring genetically modified (GM) crops amid this worsening crisis.

Federal Renewable Fuel Policy a Boost for Canadian Biodiesel Industry
20 December 2006 Canola Council of Canada
Today's federal announcement in support of a national renewable fuel strategy is a welcome and critical step forward in the development of a made-in-Canada biodiesel industry, says The Canola Council of Canada.

Iowa Produces 1.5 Billion Gallons of Ethanol in '06
20 December 2006 AP via Des Moines Register
The state will produce a record 1.5 billion gallons of ethanol in 2006, the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association said today.

Analysis: SE Asia Eyes Palm Oil
19 December 2006 United Press International
Southeast Asian nations are working to capitalize on the global biofuel bonanza that has already gripped Latin American countries like Brazil and sparked the interest of U.S. agricultural and energy companies to create a viable corn-based ethanol industry.

Can Seed Technology Keep Pace with Ethanol?
19 December 2006 AGWEB.com
Molecular breeding can double the rate of genetic gain. We're not only working with first-generation traits, we're testing a lot of traits that dramatically increase yield.

Biofuels Look to the Next Generation
18 December 2006 BBC
Biofuels are being hailed by politicians around the globe as a salvation from the twin evils of high oil prices and climate change.

New Potato Variety Boasts Less Acrylamide, Better Aroma
18 December 2006 Food Navigator
Scientists at the University of Idaho have produced a genetically modified potato variety of Ranger Russet with enhanced French fry aroma, and reduced amounts of processing-induced acrylamide.

Spud-U-Don't Like?
18 December 2006 The Scientific Alliance
It will be some years yet before we see farmers growing GM crops commercially in the UK. But Defra's decision should be welcomed as a small but sensible step forward.

Poinsettias' Genetic Markers Could Help Target Posie Pirates
18 December 2006 North Carolina Biotechnology Center
Poinsettias -- white or red, mottled or green -- are the cheerful plant favored as the harbinger of wintertime holidays.

James Lovelock Interview: The End of Eden
18 December 2006 People and Planet
Lovelock favours genetically modified crops, which require less water, and nuclear energy.

New Soybean Pulls Nitrogen from Soil, not Air
17 December 2006 Agricultural Research Service, USDA
Growers may soon have the option of planting a non-transgenically modified soybean variety that improves recovery of nitrogen from land-applied animal waste.

Group Condemns Scare GM Tactics
16 December 2006 Evening Telegraph
Scare tactics used against a farmer who was planning to grow genetically modified potatoes have been condemned by an environmental group.

Public Breeding Produces New Maize Varieties for Kenyan Farmers
15 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
The varieties produce higher yields than those currently grown by farmers, are also tolerant to drought and resistant to maize streak virus disease, stem borer damage, and leaf blight and gray leaf spot.

Argentina Bets on Biotechnology
15 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
The study shows that Argentina occupies number 8 in the list of economies investing in biotechnology, where the USA takes the lead with 1159 biotech companies, followed by Canada with 389.

Iowa State Researchers Developing Machinery to Harvest Corn Stalks and Leaves
15 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
Cellulose from stover can be converted into ethanol and thus could feed the next generation of ethanol plants.

Monsanto Climbs to New High on NYSE
15 December 2006 Bloomberg
Shares of the world's biggest developer of genetically modified crops gained on speculation high corn prices will boost U.S. seed sales next year.

Philippines: Impact of Maize Adoption
15 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
This publication describes a descriptive socio-economic study in order to determine the economic impact of the Bt corn variety in the Philippines. Results in all study locations showed a significant welfare effect of using Bt corn variety among corn farmers. Educational level and farm income were among the significant factors that influenced the adoption of Bt corn.

Thailand: Imports of GM Crops on the Rise
15 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
The Office of Policy and Planning, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment of Thailand has indicated that the import of genetically modified (GM) agricultural products to the country, such as corn and soybean, is on the rise.

Control of Pseudomonas-Caused Diseases in Fruit Trees Reviewed
15 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
Bacterial canker, blossom blast, and apical necrosis are some of the diseases caused by the Pseudomonas bacteria. These pests cause significant damage to fruit trees, severely reducing crop yields or even killing the plants.

Biofuels: a New Dawn or Business as Usual?
15 December 2006 The Scotsman
In the UK, the introduction of the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation (RTFO) is expected to result in a 20-fold increase in UK bio-fuels demand by 2010.

Fighting Famine
15 December 2006 Truth About Trade & Technology
Genetic modification allows scientists to create new types of crops and do it with incredible speed compared to the slow methods of conventional breeding. Crops with traits that will allow them to flourish in hotter or wetter or drier environments are already in the 'GM pipeline'.

Algae Provides Fuel for ‘Green' Research
14 December 2006 Arizona State University
ASU researchers Qiang Hu and Milton Sommerfeld are shedding a whole new light on the plant in the Laboratory for Algae Research & Biotechnology (LARB) at the Polytechnic campus.

Glyphosate-Tolerant Sugar Beet Considered Safe by EFSA
14 December 2006 EFSA - European Food Safety Authority
In conclusion, the GMO Panel considers that the information available for sugar beet H7-1 addresses the outstanding questions raised by the Member States and considers that products produced from sugar beet H7-1 are unlikely to have any adverse effect on human and animal health or the environment in the context of its intended uses.

Winemakers Want More Water for Wine
14 December 2006 West Australian
Wine could contain more than twice its current water content and the availability of genetically modified foods could rise after recommendations on changing the Australian food code were released yesterday.

From Candy to Brews, Sublette Malting Barley Is Sublime
14 December 2006 Agricultural Research Service, USDA
As every Santa knows, a gift-wrapped box of chocolate truffles—some filled with rich chocolate malt—makes a hard-to-resist holiday treat. The malt chosen for creating these confections might someday come from a barley bred by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) plant geneticists and their University of Idaho colleagues.

ICRISAT and DBT Partner to Establish a Center of Excellence in Genomics
14 December 2006 CGIAR
The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics is partnering with the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India to establish a Center of Excellence in Genomics at ICRISAT with financial support from DBT.

Biotech Industry Publishes New Policy Agenda for Europe - Foreword by Finnish Presidency
14 December 2006 EuropaBio Press Release
If policy makers get it right, biotechnology can be the key which unlocks the door to a sustainable and competitive future for Europe.

A Failure of Hope
13 December 2006 Saint Louis Today
A big part of the solution to Africa's hunger problem could be growing right now at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in Creve Coeur and in greenhouses in Earth City.

Acceptance of Green Gene Technology is Growing in Switzerland
13 December 2006 GMO Compass
The statistical reduction of resistance towards agricultural applications may be attributed to better information: through increasing global experience with green gene technology, individuals originally identifying themselves as opponents have become more broadly informed.

Weed Implicated in Potato Blight Persistence
12 December 2006 Agricultural Research Service, USDA
Late blight, the devastating tuber disease that triggered the Irish potato famine of the mid-1800s, has a new partner in crime.

Bt Cotton Area set to Rise 75 pc Next Season
12 December 2006 Hindu Business Line
The factors that would push up the Bt seeds use are the continued improvement in the per acre yield that raises the overall value realisation for the farmers and the moderation achieved in the seed price.

Genetic Modification Turns Plant Virus into Delivery Vehicle for Green-Friendly Insecticide, Say UF Researchers
12 December 2006 University of Florida
A plant-destroying virus farmers call one of their worst enemies may soon be an ally in the fight against crop pests and mosquitoes, say University of Florida researchers.

Biodiesel Blends for Fueling Diesel Engines
12 December 2006 University of Missouri
Biodiesel blends have a positive net effect on the environment, can reduce our dependence on imported fuels, can help improve lubricity as we switch to mandated low sulfur fuels and provide solid performance in modern diesel engines when obtained from reliable sources.

Scientists to Develop Genetically-Modified Abaca
11 December 2006 ABS-CBN News
Scientists are developing a genetically-modified (GM) abaca to come up with a variant that is resistant to major viral diseases threatening the country's fiber industry.

Hunger Leaves Children Susceptible to Disease
11 December 2006 St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The biotech cassava project - which aims to increase both the amount and nutritional quality of food - could reduce the number of hungry people entering hospitals like Queen Elizabeth, Manary says.

Life Sciences Network Supports GM Field Trial
11 December 2006 Scoop
The Life Sciences Network has written to ERMA in support of Crop and Food's application to field trial genetically modified brassicas in the Lincoln area confirmed Dr William Rolleston, Chairman of the Life Sciences Network today.

UN-Appetizing Food Regulations?
10 December 2006 Legal Television Network
They overlook the fact that during two decades of widespread use, the performance of gene-spliced crops has been spectacular, with farmers enjoying increased yields, decreased use of agricultural chemicals, and lower occupational exposures to pesticides.

GM Bananas to Fight Wilt in Africa
09 December 2006 IITA
There is no doubt that farmers and governments have tried to make the most use of available methods to fight banana wilt. But these efforts need to be supported with additional alternatives-developing transgenic banana varieties resistant to banana xanthomonas wilt (BXW) would boost the available arsenal to fight the disease and save livelihoods in the Great Lakes region.

Tanzania to Establish Biotech Centre
09 December 2006 Tanzania Daily News
The Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA) will establish an agricultural biotechnology centre aimed at modernising agriculture within and outside Tanzania.

Engineered Yeast Speeds Ethanol Production
08 December 2006 Massachusetts Institute of Technology MIT
MIT scientists have engineered yeast that can improve the speed and efficiency of ethanol production, a key component to making biofuels a significant part of the U.S. energy supply.

WTO Ruling Disregards 'Precautionary Principle': Favors Science-Based 'Approach' to EU Biotech Rules
08 December 2006 Institute for Trade, Standards and Sustainable Development, Inc.
The Precautionary Principle eschews science-based 'risk' assessments and an evaluation of the economic benefits and costs of regulation.

Turning Waste Into Paper Through Biotechnology
08 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
The industrial processing required to break down lignin and for the bleaching of the resulting paper pulp can be damaging to the environment. Research scientists from the IRD and INRA turned to biotechnology for an alternative, biologically based, solution.

A Future Powered by Fuel From Plants
08 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
The scientific journal Nature is devoting this week’s Business Feature to biofuels, to explore their contribution to global energy needs in three different areas.

RAPD Markers Associated with Blackleg Resistance in Brassica
08 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
A number of different sources of genes which confer complete resistance to blackleg disease are now being tested.

SA Hopes to Tackle Local Problems such as Malaria, HIV and Crop Diseases
08 December 2006 Financial Mail
A group of SA's finest research institutions have thrown their weight behind a national initiative that will enable SA to fast-track its ability to extract high-value proteins from genetically modified plants.

Monsanto Canada Establishes Grower Advisory Council as Part of Ongoing Commitment to Dialogue
08 December 2006 Monsanto Canada
Leaders from five major Canadian farm commodity organizations have come together to advance the interests of Canadian growers through a collaborative advisory panel established by Monsanto Canada.

SA Unveils R6bn Biofuels Plan
07 December 2006 Fin24
South Africa wants biofuels to contribute up to 75% of renewable energy needs by 2013 under a R6bn programme, a government spokesperson said on Thursday.

Heat-Tolerant Wheat: the Future of Food Development
07 December 2006 Food Navigator
A major global research effort has generated climate-resilient innovations such as crops bred to withstand heat, salt, submergence or waterlogging.

Biotech Seen Doubling U.S. Corn Yields by 2030
07 December 2006 KTIC 840 via Ellinghuysen
Advances in seed breeding could allow U.S. farmers to double corn yields by 2030, reaching a national average yield of 300 bushels per acre, a seed researcher said on Thursday.

Filling Tomorrow's Rice Bowl
07 December 2006 The Economist
Genetic engineers are applying their skills to tropical crops.

Elusive Rust Resistance Genes Located
06 December 2006 United Press International
Australian botanists have reported discovering a DNA marker for two key rust resistance genes, allowing breeding of more rust resistant wheat varieties.

Monsanto Reiterates Strong Demand for Corn and Traits
06 December 2006 Dow Jones via Checkbiotech.org
Monsanto is seeing strong early-season orders for its corn seeds and traits, particularly seeds that contain three traits, Chief Technology Officer Robb Fraley reiterated Tuesday.

Monsanto Campus Shuttles Now Running On B20 Biodiesel Fuel
06 December 2006 Monsanto
Monsanto Company announced today that the three on-campus shuttles that provide employee transportation around the world-headquarters campus are now operating on B20 biodiesel fuel, a blend of 20 percent by volume biodiesel with 80 percent by volume petroleum diesel.

Borlaug Getting Congressional Gold Medal
06 December 2006 Cedar Rapids Gazette
The U.S. House voted unanimous approval Wednesday to award the congressional Gold Medal of Honor, the nation's highest civilian honor, to Norman Borlaug of Iowa for his genius in feeding a hungry world.

GMO Is Safe
05 December 2006 iafrica
As far as health risks and the safety of GM food are concerned, after 11 years on the market, there is not a shred of medical or scientific evidence available anywhere in the world to prove any adverse effects of GM food/crops on humans, animals or the environment.

GM Potatoes Could 'Strengthen Competitiveness'
05 December 2006 Food Navigator
Amflora, the GM starch potato at the centre of recent controversy, could help strengthen the competitiveness of the potato starch industry, according to EuropaBio.

Fuel, Food and Farming - Sir Don Curry Hears Yorkshire Students Views on the Future of Farming
05 December 2006 Department for Environment, Food And Rural Affairs (National)
In 2026, combating climate change and meeting the challenges of global warming will mean that farmers are harvesting energy through biofuels and alternative energy sources, and using GM technology to meet the planet's food needs.

Agbiotech Evolution Needs a Regulatory Revolution
05 December 2006 Information Systems for Biotechnology
The stunted growth of agricultural biotechnology worldwide stands as one of the great societal tragedies of the past quarter century.

Ecological Impacts of Genetically Engineered Crops: Ten Years of Field Research and Commercial Cultivation
05 December 2006 Information Systems for Biotechnology
The data available so far provide no scientific evidence that the commercial cultivation of GE crops has caused environmental harm.

Gene Flow from GE to Conventional Maize in Real Situations of Coexistence
05 December 2006 Information Systems for Biotechnology
We have shown that coexistence between GE and conventional fields can be achieved by establishing simple rules that take into account the synchronicity of flowering and distance between fields.

GMOs Are Key to Commercial Agriculture
05 December 2006 New Vision
In Uganda, no GMO crop has been commercialised but the potential is enormous.

Agriculture Ministry Acknowledges Rise in Bt Cotton Acreage
05 December 2006 Bharat Textile
The area under cultivation of Bt cotton rose by 154 percent to 30.84 lakh acres in 2005 from 12.13 lakh acres in 2004; whereas the impressive increase in Bt cotton acreage was fuelled by substantial acreage increase in major producing states of Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh.

Biotechnology Key to Increased Food Production
05 December 2006 India Info
Opportunity for plant biotech in India is bright as it can lead to yield enhancement, insecticide usage reduction, drought and salinity tolerance and Nutrition enhancement. This is going to be the future of agriculture.

Intensified Research Effort Yields Climate-Resilient Agriculture to Blunt Impact of Global Warming
05 December 2006 CGIAR
Researchers are developing more reliable varieties of food crops capable of withstanding increased temperatures, drought, and flooding.

SA to Host International Genetics Lab
05 December 2006 The Independent S. Africa
South Africa will be the first country in Africa and the third in the world to host a laboratory of the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB).

Search for Crops That Can Survive Global Warming
04 December 2006 The Guardian
Some £200m a year will be poured into the research by governments across the world to help agricultural experts develop crops that can withstand heat and drought, find more efficient farming techniques and make better use of increasingly fragile soil and scarce water supplies.

Monsanto Company Donates $100,000 to American Red Cross Winter Storm Relief Efforts
04 December 2006 Monsanto
Monsanto Company has pledged $100,000 to support Red Cross relief efforts following last night's severe winter storms and subsequent power outages in Missouri and Illinois.

Monsanto Company And Landec Corporation Reach Two Agreements
04 December 2006 Monsanto
Monsanto Company and Landec Corporation announced two separate agreements today, both of which are expected to broaden their reach and product offerings to U.S. farmers.

University of Saskatchewan Program Gets USD$150,000 Boost from Monsanto Fund
04 December 2006 The Monsanto Fund
A program developed by the University of Saskatchewan's College of Agriculture and Bioresources aimed at showcasing agricultural sciences as a vital and dynamic career choice for students has been awarded a USD$150,000 grant from the Monsanto Fund.

Newly Cloned Gene Key to More Adaptable Wheat Varieties
04 December 2006 University of California - Davis
In a research discovery that has practical implications for improving wheat varieties, a team of scientists at the University of California, Davis, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture have cloned a gene that controls the flowering time of barley and wheat.

New Cancer-Combating Yeast Strains Developed
04 December 2006 Food Navigator
The manufacturer of a genetically modified yeast variety that is designed to reduce levels of the carcinogen ethyl carbamate in wine last week announced that it has transformed six new yeast strains.

Experts Worry Warmer Earth Will Slash Farm Yields
04 December 2006 Reuters
Urgent action is needed to make sure a warming climate doesn't slash crop yields, heighten the risk of famine and deepen poverty for the world's most vulnerable, international experts said on Monday.

BIO Welcomes Codex Alimentarius Project to Develop Adventitious Presence Policy
01 December 2006 BIO
The EPA and FDA food safety evaluations recognize that adventitious presence is a safe and natural part of plant biology, seed production, and the distribution of commodity crops.

Regulators Agree on Co-ordinated Risk Assessment Plan
01 December 2006 Food Navigator
The EU's national regulators yesterday agreed on a plan to co-ordinate food safety risk assessments across the bloc.

Monsanto's High-tech Seeds Sprout
01 December 2006 St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Monsanto Co., the world's leading producer of genetically modified seeds and traits, said Thursday that it expects to capture a record 19 percent of U.S. corn seed sales next year with its national brands.

Progress in South African Biotech Reviewed
01 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
In a review published in the journal Trends in Biotechnology, researchers at the University of Pretoria wrote that the investments of the South African government to develop its biotechnology sector are now paying off.

Transgenic Seed with Increased Longevity
01 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
Results of a study on transgenic tobacco indicated that a protein called HaHSFA9 from a sunflower gene could increase the resistance of seeds to deterioration and increase longevity.

Improving Cassava Protein Through Biotech
01 December 2006 Crop Biotech Net
To help prevent PEM, biotechnological strategies may be used to increase the levels of protein and essential amino acids in cassava tubers.

Defra Approves GM Potato Research Trials
01 December 2006 Department for Environment, Food And Rural Affairs (National)
Defra has approved an application by the company BASF to undertake trials of a GM disease-resistant potato. The trials will take place on two sites in England, starting in 2007.

Moisture Probes Demonstrate Superior Root Performance Of Yieldgard® Plus
01 December 2006 Monsanto
A moisture utilization study conducted by Monsanto this season has provided a unique look at how YieldGard® Plus Corn roots are able to effectively absorb subsoil moisture under dry conditions.