Large consumer organisation wants gene-edited products regulated as GMOs The European Community of Consumer Co-operatives, which has 30 million consumer-members, wants gene-edited products to continue to be regulated as GMOs. It states that new GM techniques (also called new genomic techniques of NGTs) "are genome editing techniques that can cause unexpected effects on the DNA. As today NGTs applications are constantly increasing, we believe that NGTs products should be examined with the same EU authorization procedures [as] for GMOs." Euro Coop on TwitterMassive production of GMO golden rice seeds to start this year The Philippines Dept of Agriculture has announced that "massive production of Golden Rice seeds and production of Golden Rice" will begin this year in certain provinces. [GMW: Here's an article explaining why the Stop Golden Rice Network strongly opposes this GM crop.] Philippine News AgencyGene editing can give rise to unforeseen heritable mutations Medical applications of CRISPR-Cas9, the "genetic scissors", create new potential for curing diseases, but treatments must be safe and reliable. In a new study, researchers discovered that the method can give rise to unforeseen changes in DNA that can be inherited by the next generation. These scientists therefore urge caution and meticulous validation before using CRISPR-Cas9 for medical purposes. [GMW: This study has now been peer reviewed and published in Nature Communications. GMWatch reported on it, and commented on the implications for gene editing in plants, when it was still in pre-print format.] News Medical Life SciencesDONATE TO GMWATCH
