| | 21/January/25
| Poland's gene editing gamble leaves EU Member States baffled Poland’s bid to end an EU impasse on new gene-edited crops has flopped after its much-anticipated patent proposal was met with confusion from other member states. Poland's proposal was meant to unite the bloc and secure a deal before handing over the EU Council presidency in July. Instead, diplomats at a working group meeting were left scratching their heads. “What is the problem they want to solve with this? A fear of international monopolies?” asked one diplomat. “The solution is causing more problems than it solves.” Another diplomat noted that the complexity of the Polish proposal has itself become a stumbling block. “Consensus was that the text has become so complex that no one can make sense of it any more." Politico (paywalled, subscription only, no link in header) New Zealand ministries concerned about trade and ethical implications of GMO deregulation More consideration of trade and market access risks from GMOs is needed as New Zealand prepares to adopt legislation to deregulate GM gene-edited crops, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) has warned. Te Puni Kokiri (government's principal policy advisor on Māori wellbeing and development, TPK) has also expressed concerns. MFAT is concerned about implications for international trade. “This is due to the complex assurance processes for gene technology in key export markets, and the unpredictable nature of the international trading environment where gene technology has been historically controversial.” TPK is concerned the proposal does not sufficiently provide for Māori to uphold kaitiaki (environmental guardian) relationships and to benefit from the reforms. Farmers Weekly NZ GMO tomato project funded by Gates Foundation and US taxpayers hits roadblock The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and DARPA, a division of the US Department of Defense, are funding research to genetically engineer tomatoes to be able to disrupt the reproductive cycle of the whitefly, a common insect that damages tomato plants. The researchers aim to develop a GM technology that could modify plants to produce proteins that target and destroy whitefly eggs. The authors note that targeting egg viability is a “unique strategy” for transgenic plants, setting it apart from most GM insecticidal plants that target adult insects. But critics of the technology, including Prof Michael Antoniou and GMWatch's Claire Robinson, said they aren’t surprised the research is running into trouble. The Defender "Corrupt" British zoologist Peter Daszak sanctioned over Wuhan experiments that may have sparked Covid British zoologist Dr Peter Daszak has become the first individual to be stripped of US government funding over his involvement in dangerous experiments which may have sparked the Covid pandemic. Daszak, the former president of EcoHealth Alliance, worked with scientists at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) to import and manipulate bat coronaviruses ahead of the global outbreak. The first known Covid cases emerged just eight miles from WIV, but Daszak has continued to claim that the Wuhan labs did not have viruses close enough to Covid-19 to trigger the pandemic, had they leaked.
However, in December, the US select subcommittee on the coronavirus crisis concluded that coronavirus “likely emerged because of a laboratory or research-related accident”. This weekend, the US Dept of Health and Human Services (HHS) debarred Dr Daszak, and US-based EcoHealth Alliance, blocking both from receiving federal funds for five years.
James Comer, the house committee on oversight and government reform chairman, said the ruling was a victory for “the safety of citizens worldwide”. He added: “Bad actor EcoHealth Alliance and its corrupt former president, Dr Peter Daszak, were formally debarred by HHS for using taxpayer funds to facilitate dangerous gain-of-function research in China. Given that a lab-related incident involving gain-of-function research is the most likely origin of Covid-19, EcoHealth and its former president should never again receive a single cent from the US taxpayer.” The Telegraph (paywalled) You heard it from GMWatch first! GMWatch welcomes the news (above) that Peter Daszak and EcoHealth Alliance have finally been formally barred from receiving future US government funding. Yet when Daszak was put in charge of investigating the origins of Covid, no mainstream media outlet was willing to report how insanely inappropriate that was. But we did... back in 2020. @GMWatch on X Study links glyphosate herbicide to problems with infant health Increased exposure to glyphosate, one of the most widely used herbicides in the United States and much of the world, harms infant health in US agricultural counties, according to a new study by two University of Oregon economists. In a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Emmett Reynier and Edward Rubin showed that a dramatic increase in the use of glyphosate in US counties where most GM crops are grown lowered birthweights and gestation, the number of weeks from conception to birth. They note that because pre-term births, on average, cost an estimated $82,000 in additional medical, educational and other expenses compared to a full-term birth, the national economic impact of the infant health effects translates to between $750 million and $1.1 billion in annual expenses. It does not include other potential health costs. Scientific Inquirer Advocates call on Iowa lawmakers to defeat "Cancer Gag Act" Advocates for small communities in Iowa are calling on state lawmakers not to pass the so-called "Cancer Gag Act", which they said would give pesticide companies immunity from lawsuits by Iowans harmed by their products. Iowa lawmakers considered Senate File 2412 last year but ran out of time to act on it. Caitlin Golle, Community Organiser for the advocacy group Iowa Citizens for Community Action, said lawmakers are already poised to take up a similar measure in the new session. She and the Iowa Cancer Registry think it is the wrong thing to do in a state already seeing high cancer rates. MSN We hope you’ve found this newsletter interesting. Please support our work with a one-off or regular donation. Thank you! __________________________________________________________ Website: http://www.gmwatch.org
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