Japan may allow genome-edited food sale
Reading Time: < 1 minuteJAPAN’S MINISTRY OF HEALTH Labour, and Welfare Expert Committee announced their proposal to allow most of the genome-edited currently under development to be marketed without safety screening by the state. It is expected that the proposal that would accelerate the creation of more nutritious and improved crops. In the draft report of the Committee, the method to destroy target genes, including livestock products and fishery products, as well as […]
US requires labeling of GMO foods as “bioengineered”
Reading Time: < 1 minuteA RECENT ruling by the USDA exempts certain biotech foods from bioengineered labeling requirements, including highly refined products such as candies, cooking oils and sodas with levels of bioengineered foods too low for the genetic modifications to be detected. The Biotechnology Innovation Organisation, an industry group, says the regulation “provides a mechanism for consumers to access clear, consistent and truthful information about food in a way that does not […]
Study: Anti-GMO sentiment has repercussions for developing world
Reading Time: < 1 minuteA STUDY conducted at the Iowa State University analysed dozens of previous scientific studies on the safety of Bt corn and provides an overview of the risk assessment process applied to genetically modified (GM) crops. Walter Suza, an adjunct assistant professor of agronomy at Iowa State and a co-author of the study, said that Bt corn could help farmers in Africa to combat an emerging pest capable […]
Pseudomonas International Biennial Conference 2019
Reading Time: < 1 minuteFor more information about the conference, go to website: http://www.pseudomonasconference.com
ISAAA gets new SEAsia Centre director
Reading Time: < 1 minuteLOS BANOS, PHILIPPINES: The International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA) announces the appointment of Dr Rhodora Romero-Aldemita as the new ISAAA SEAsiaCenter Director based at the International Rice Research Institute, in the Philippines. Aldemita has been working with ISAAA since 2007. She is a multi-awarded crop scientist with knowledge and experience accumulated over the years on agriculture-related topics such as plant pathology, plant physiology, molecular biology, genetic engineering, and rice […]
Selangor rides global halal bandwagon
Reading Time: 2 minutesTHE global halal market is projected to reach USD7.7 trillion to USD30.6 trillion. The countries on forefront capturing the halal economy pie are China, Japan, Vietnam, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei and Indonesia. Japan is strengthening its halal certification ahead of its 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games. For Malaysia halal economy contributes 7.5% to its […]
We can eat our fish and fight climate change too
Reading Time: 3 minutesBY PHILIP A LORING & RATANA CHUENPAGDEE KWAN PHAYAO, a large, crescent moon of a lake in Northern Thailand, is home to about 50 fish species, several hundred small-scale farmers and fishers, and the city of Phayao, where 18,000 people live. The lake has always been important to local people for fishing, but today, the lake’s fisheries are at the centre of the local […]
A step closer to fusion energy
Reading Time: 2 minutesHARNESSING nuclear fusion, which powers the sun and stars, to help meet earth’s energy needs, is a step closer after researchers showed that using two types of imaging can help them assess the safety and reliability of parts used in a fusion energy device. Scientists from Swansea University, Culham Centre for Fusion Energy, ITER in France, and the Max-Planck Institute of Plasma Physics in Germany […]
Mars moon got its grooves from rolling stones, study suggests
Reading Time: 2 minutesA NEW study bolsters the idea that strange grooves crisscrossing the surface of the Martian moon Phobos were made by rolling boulders blasted free from an ancient asteroid impact. The research, published in Planetary and Space Science, uses computer models to simulate the movement of debris from Stickney crater, a huge gash on one end of Phobos’ oblong body. The models show that boulders rolling across the […]
Agricultural waste drives us closer to greener transport
Reading Time: 2 minutesA TEAM of researchers, led by the University of Ports-mouth, have developed a bio-composite material using date palm fibre biomass (bio-mass is a term that includes waste material from plants, food waste and sewage) that can be used in non-structural parts, such as car bumpers and door linings. The team also involved researchers from the University of Cambridge, INRA (Institut national de la recherche […]