A new policy briefing from the Genome Editing and Agriculture: Policies, Practices and Public Perceptions (GEAP3) project discusses choices and dilemmas facing policy makers and societal stakeholders in the European Union and the United Kingdom asks bigger questions.
Can a new method for detecting a new gene-edited plant ensure product traceability, labelling and consumer trust?
In September of this year, the first-ever public detection method for a gene-edited crop was announced. The new method detects a herbicide-tolerant (SU) rapeseed variety that was developed using gene […]
How a new biotech rule will foster distrust with the public and impede progress in science
Reclaiming a baseline of accountability is the first step in building public confidence in regulatory systems that work for people as well as science that the public believes in.
We need to talk about CRISPR
We need an active public debate on the ethics of gene editing technology to realise its potential and prevent it being used in nefarious ways.
Moving the discussion around GE animals beyond soundbites
This week an unusually diverse group of stakeholders gathered together to discuss a rapidly developing issue in animal agriculture – gene edited livestock. The day-long roundtable meeting, which was co-hosted […]
Rewriting nature?
Synthetic biology – altering or redesigning genes to meet human objectives – is a fast-developing field. So far mostly applied in agriculture and medicine, synthetic biology could have substantial knock-on […]
A lively discussion about ‘organic GMOs’
Panellists took up very different positions during a lively and provocative discussion on the question ‘Can organic GMOs ever be a thing?’ held last week at Natural & Organic Products […]
Scientists call for a moratorium on heritable human gene-editing
A group of 18 scientists and bioethicists from seven countries has called for a “global moratorium” on all clinical uses of human germline editing to ‘re-engineer’ humans.
US academics feel the invisible hand of politicians and big agriculture
As universities rely more on industry for funds, researchers taking a stand on health or environment say they’re sidelined. The Guardian newspaper delves into the influence that corporate money can have on academics and scientists, and therefore the accepted framing and narratives around global problems – and proposed solutions.
What care ethics can bring to the GMO conversation
How do we deal with the increasing polarisation in the GMO debate? Care ethics, a theme coming from ecofeminism, allows, according to the authors, to assess technologies “not simply as devices designed to create a certain end experience for a user, but as transformative systems that smuggle in numerous social and political interests”