Western Producer
Viewpoint: ‘There are still some people out there screaming about gene edited crops, but that opposition is getting weaker’
The amount of money and human resources directed at gene edited crops is staggering, says Kevin Folta, a University of ...
Companies bet millions on the plant-based meat substitute revolution. Why hasn’t that panned out?
Futurists and pundits often make compelling cases for how the agricultural world will unfold. Here are a half dozen instances ...
Canadian farmers abandon organic certification because approved ‘natural’ chemicals can’t control devastating grasshoppers
Organic growers may have decisions to make after grasshoppers chomped their way through prairie fields this summer ...
Viewpoint: Canadian government incentives to boost agricultural sustainability lags while billions are given away to high-tech ventures. Here’s why that needs to change
This federal government appears to look at almost every decision through a climate change lens. For better or worse, Ottawa ...
Viewpoint: How agricultural biotechnology can help North American farmers cope with climate change
The use of modern seed genetics, which includes genetically modified crops, chemical and fertilizer use, greatly contributes to improved agricultural ...
Canada alarmed over Mexico’s rejection of GMO corn imports
Canada is deeply concerned about Mexico’s recent departure from its longstanding approach to regulating genetically modified crops ...
Viewpoint: ‘Less starvation and less malnutrition are a priceless benefit of GM crops’
Over the past 20 years, academics have analyzed the yield effects following the adoption of GM crops in every market ...
Viewpoint: It’s a bad idea to ‘recognize anti-science reasoning’ by imposing overly stringent regulations on Canadian gene-edited crops
If a new and novel trait is added to a genetic line, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, as a part ...
Viewpoint: Plants are ‘carbon sequestration factories’. It’s time to capitalize on their natural ability to address climate change
Could plants be created that have higher rates of photosynthesis to improve growth and yield? The short answer is yes ...
Road to sustainable GMO salmon production: AquaBounty’s endless slog through broken US regulatory system
AquaBounty's transgenic salmon is the first GM animal protein approved for human consumption in the United States and Canada ...
Viewpoint: ‘Farmers don’t need nitrogen fertilizers at all’? — Why easy solutions to cut down on chemical fertilizers don’t work
Clover, it turns out, can be used to fix nitrogen and boost yields in pasture forages for dairy cows. Who ...
Viewpoint: Countries opening doors to genetically modified wheat and other cereal grains, but regulatory reluctance remains
Genetically modified wheat is finding paths into crop production in some parts of the world, and the science behind it ...
Canada poised to encourage gene-edited crops as Health Canada updates plant breeding regulations
Health Canada has finalized a decision that should pave the way for crop breeding innovation in Canada. After years of ...
Can CRISPR gene edited seeds be grown organically? Organic farmers and advocates are split
The International Federation of Organic Agricultural Movements (IFOAM) said, in a paper, that “new genetic engineering technologies… are not compatible ...
GMO crops and glyphosate use can offer carbon sequestration benefits, Canadian study suggests
University of Saskatchewan research has concluded that genetically modified canola and the use of glyphosate have increased carbon sequestration in ...
Viewpoint: Politics — not science — driving Canadian policy decisions over glyphosate and other agricultural tools
Ahead of a federal election call, three [Canadian] federal ministers called a halt to a process that would likely have ...
Are bees disappearing due to ‘climate chaos’? Out of 250 bumblebee species around the world, only a few species are in danger
It’s easy to find... articles on the internet which claim that bumblebees and wild bees will be extinct in 20 ...
Changing course, Health Canada finds neonicotinoid pesticides ‘not a threat’ to aquatic insects
In 2018, Health Canada proposed to phase out all agricultural uses of thiamethoxam, a Syngenta product, and clothianidin, a Bayer ...
Gene-edited crops ‘safe for human consumption and the environment,’ Health Canada finds
Health Canada is proposing new rules to deal with plant breeding innovation, including gene-edited crops. To develop the new guidelines, ...
Foods made from gene-edited wheat may contain lower levels of potentially carcinogenic chemical acrylamide
Burnt bread contains a compound known as acrylamide, a chemical that can cause cancer. The darker the toast, the more ...
Viewpoint: Gene-edited crop developers need to win public trust. Transparency is how they can do it
In 2009, the genome editing tool CRISPR was introduced, which allows scientists to edit the DNA of organisms such as ...
Gene editing immunizes canola against nasty fungal disease, and may cut farmer dependence on fungicides
Field trials confirmed greenhouse trial results of a new canola trait that’s sclerotinia resistant. Cibus is an independent trait developer ...
Viewpoint: Anti-Monsanto film ‘Percy’ promotes public confusion about crop biotech
Percy Schmeiser, a farmer from [Saskatchewan, Canada], has the real-life role of David in the movie adaptation of a reality ...
Viewpoint: Europe can’t produce enough food if it cuts use of farm chemicals but opposes gene editing
Europe is asking its farmers to use fewer pesticides and less fertilizer, while still producing the same amount of food ...
Canadian glyphosate-cancer lawsuits against Bayer may proceed regardless of US settlement
.... [T]he agreements, between Bayer and numerous law firms in America, don’t apply to potential class action lawsuits in Canada, ...
As CRISPR crops become more common, don’t throw GMOs under the bus, scientists warn
Farmers and scientists may be tempted to throw transgenic crops in the trash. The technology, which has provided benefits to ...
With consumers still fearful of synthetic chemicals, biotech firms spend billions on biopesticide development
Major players like Bayer and start-up companies are spending billions to identify fungi, bacteria and organic compounds in plants that ...
EU neonic insecticide ban cut UK canola production from 1.8 million acres to 1.3 million annually
In 2012, U.K. farmers seeded about 1.8 million acres of oilseed rape [canola]. But over the last eight years, acreage ...