The Organic & Non-GMO Report Newsletter

Lawsuit challenges narrow and unclear GMO food labeling rules

Center for Food Safety (CFS) and a coalition of food labeling nonprofits and retailers filed an appeal last week with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, challenging a previous ruling that allows the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to continue using the misleading terminology “bioengineered” and avoid labeling the majority of genetically engineered (GMO) foods. In the lower court […]

California lawmakers try to halt approval of GM mosquitoes

California’s state legislature is vigorously swatting away approval of Oxitec’s genetically modified mosquito—approved for release in Tulare County by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency but awaiting the OK from the Department of Pesticide Regulation. Based on unknown impacts such a move could unleash upon humans and other species, the lawmakers are pushing the Department to […]

New testing method for GMO crops developed

Researchers from North Carolina State University in Raleigh have presented a new method to determine whether safety testing of genetically modified crops is needed. Published in Science in September, the article reported that “genomics could be used to scan new crop varieties for unexpected DNA changes,” similar to the way biomedical sciences scan human genomes […]

India’s Supreme Court halts release of GM mustard pending further investigation

In early November, the Supreme Court of India put a stay on a GEAC decision of October 18 that was used by the Ministry of Environment and Forests on October 25 to allow environmental release of GM mustard in five states. The herbicide-tolerant mustard won’t be released, pending further consideration on November 10. Ms. Aruna […]

New organic food and farming report recommends policies for upcoming Farm Bill

Three organic agriculture advocates have created a report that provides a roadmap for lawmakers to unlock the potential of organic agriculture in the 2023 Farm Bill and beyond. NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council), the Swette Center for Sustainable Food Systems at Arizona State University (ASU), and Californians for Pesticide Reform (CPR) wrote to highlight the […]