The Organic & Non-GMO Report Newsletter

Bob Randall still spreading the gospel of organic gardening in Houston

Urban Harvest is the fourth-largest community garden program in the country, and 77-year-old Bob Randall is still planting seeds. A New Jersey native who thrived on produce from his grandparents’ farm, Randall worked part-time in college in pesticide research. Soon after he “abandoned pesticides for ecology,” earning a PhD in anthropology focused on people’s interactions […]

GMO Free USA launches survey to assess safety of Impossible Burger

Following reports of adverse health reactions from people consuming Impossible Foods’ plant-based Impossible Burger, the non-profit GMO Free USA is collecting data via a public health survey. It is urging individuals who have experienced mild to severe digestive or other health reactions after eating the Impossible Burger or other Impossible Foods products to participate. The […]

Cibus wrongly claims new gene edited canola traits are non-GMO

The biotech industry’s attempts to muddy the waters about what is genetically engineered and what is not was displayed again recently when gene editing company Cibus issued a press release stating that it “Achieves Critical Milestones for Three Non-GMO Traits to Increase Canola Yield.” The three canola traits were developed using gene editing. Cibus claims […]

Researchers find persistence of antibiotic-resistant GMO genes in sewage sludge

New findings about genes in GMOs may help explain development of a growing global health threat, antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Biotechnology and Bioengineering published a recent study showing that antibiotic-resistant genes inserted into GM foods are able to withstand conventional wastewater treatments. Washington State University’s Courtney Gardner has received a three-year USDA grant to continue the graduate […]

Wasps as an effective pest control for agriculture

Common wasp species could be valuable at sustainably managing crop pests, finds a new University College London (UCL)-led experimental study in Brazil. The study, published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, found that social wasps are effective predators that can manage pests on two high-value crops, corn and sugarcane. As wasps are found all over the globe, […]