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PLATTSBURGH — City of Plattsburgh councilors have taken steps to make the city free of GMOs and pesticides.

"This is important because we all need to be conscientious of our responsibility to keep our planet healthy," Councilor Rachelle Armstrong (D-Ward 1) said at a recent council meeting.

The council unanimously approved a lengthy resolution that encourages city departments and residents to refrain from the use of Genetically Modified Organism seeds and pesticides on their lawns and other areas outside their properties.

The main concerns are that GMOs and pesticides can affect the bee population and other pollinating insects, causing harm to food supplies, and that humans can suffer serious health issues because of their use.

The African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) has on 7th August 2015, lodged an appeal to Agriculture, Water Affairs and Forestry Minister Senzeni Zokwana, against the general release approval of Monsanto’s genetically modified (GM) maize, MON87460 granted by the Executive Council (EC): GMO Act. Such approval means that Monsanto can sell the GM maize seed, MON87460, to farmers in South Africa for cultivation. MON87460 is alleged to be ‘drought tolerant;’ a claim the ACB vehemently disputes.

Administrative justice, procedural fairness and sound science to the test

The appeal is a test for administrative justice and procedural fairness in regard to GM decision-making in South Africa. Administrative decision-making must be based on rigorous food safety, environmental and socio-economic assessments of the potential adverse effects of MON87460, taking into international biosafety best practice. According to the ACB, the EC’s approval is typical of GM decision-making, which simply reiterates and summarises information provided by Monsanto, who has a clear vested interest in the approval. Such “rubber stamping” is unlawful. The EC is under a legal obligation to apply a risk averse and cautious approach, which takes into account uncertainties and the limits of current knowledge about the consequences of approving MON87460 for commercial production. The GM variety will introduce novel proteins into human food and animal feed chains as well as the environment. There is no reliable history of safe use of the GM variety to justify its introduction in South Africa.

GM crop ban

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Scotland Agriculture

Scotland to protect clean, green status and prohibit GM crops.

Growing genetically modified (GM) crops will not be permitted in Scotland, Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead has announced as he moved to protect Scotland’s clean, green status.

Mr Lochhead has confirmed that the Scottish Government intends to take advantage of new EU rules allowing countries to opt out of growing EU-authorised GM crops.

The Scottish Government will shortly submit a request that Scotland is excluded from any European consents for the cultivation of GM crops, including the variety of genetically modified maize already approved and six other GM crops that are awaiting authorisation.

The Cabinet Secretary said:

“Scotland is known around the world for our beautiful natural environment - and banning growing genetically modified crops will protect and further enhance our clean, green status.

“There is no evidence of significant demand for GM products by Scottish consumers and I am concerned that allowing GM crops to be grown in Scotland would damage our clean and green brand, thereby gambling with the future of our £14 billion food and drink sector.

“Scottish food and drink is valued at home and abroad for its natural, high quality which often attracts a premium price, and I have heard directly from food and drink producers in other countries that are ditching GM because of a consumer backlash.

“That is why I strongly support the continued application of the precautionary principle in relation to GM crops and intend to take full advantage of the flexibility allowed under these new EU rules to ban GM crops from being grown in Scotland.

nternational Magazine Nature warns against insects with gene drive

After protests by a broad coalition of NGOs against plans to release genetically engineered olive flies in Spain, the UK company Oxitec now has withdrawn its application. As reported by Spanish media, Oxitec was informed by regional authorities that the experiments will not be allowed. After 2013, this is the second time that the company has failed to get approval for its application in Spain. Once released, the genetically engineered flies might spread throughout the Mediterranean region and all the locations where native populations of olive flies occur. A broad coalition of mostly representative organisations from Mediterranean countries are demanding that any release of these flies should be banned completely.

Retail outlets across Europe are taking glyphosate – the main ingredient of Monsanto’s Roundup – off their shelves, despite government officials declaring it safe to use

Monsanto is far from happy. The main ingredient of its highly profitable weedkiller, Roundup, often used in conjunction with GM crops, has been declared a “probable carcinogenic”.

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In Germany, for example, retailers have started removing glyphosate herbicides from their shelves, with one state protection minister calling for a ban on the use of the chemical by the general public. “This pesticide should not be found in gardens, parks or on children’s playgrounds. I also do not think use in private gardens is appropriate,” explained Lower Saxony’s consumer protection minister Christian Meyer.

However, German government safety officials recently declared it safe. A report from the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessments (BfR), seen by the Guardian, found “very limited evidence of carcinogenicity” in mice exposed to glyphosate and recommended its re-approval.

European officials are far from unanimous, however, with the French environment minister Ségolène Royal announcing plans in June for new restrictions on the sale of glyphosate at garden centres in the country.

Celebrity Moms Want Food Companies to Get Real About GMO Labeling

Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ginnifer Goodwin, and Constance Zimmer all signed a petition pushing for labeling transparency.

"You cannot conceal what's in our kids' food," celebrity personal trainer Jillian Michaels says in a new PSA for Just Label It, a campaign aimed at supporting mandatory labeling for genetically modified foods, better known as GMOs.

The new video, which features commentary from actors and moms including Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ginnifer Goodwin, and Constance Zimmer, is linked to a petition asking food companies to become more transparent about the products they're selling.

"When I started looking into what's in the food that I feed my son, I discovered how difficult it is to figure it out," Fast and the Furious actor Jordana Brewster says in the video. "I want GMOs labeled so that I don't need to guess whether or not they're in our food."

Protest over plans to end regions right to be GMO free

Hawke's Bay premium food producers have accused the government of a "back door" move to strip regions of the power to stay free of genetically modified organisms.

New Zealand's pure image boosts produce growing exporters to earn a premium in global markets for their fruit, veges, wine and food.

But some believe this is now threatened by a draft regulation which would end councils' right to ban GMO trees from their patch.

The proposed National Environmental Standard for Plantation Forestry, drafted by the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI), means that once the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) had approved a genetically-modified tree-type for planting, no council could prevent it from being planted in their areas.

In its submission, Pure Hawke's Bay, a lobby group of produce, wine and food exporters, said staying GMO-free was key to preserving and developing the region's brand as a premium, natural food-producing region.

"Key markets remain sensitive even to the risk of contamination with trace levels of GM content," it warned.

Docs, farmers, scientists promote organic farming

Meerut: Environment activist and author Vandana Shiva kick-started a nationwide campaign, Anna Swaraj Andolan, from Meerut on Sunday. The campaign is meant to make farmers aware of the benefits of organic farming and also inform them of the hidden agenda of multi-national companies, which allegedly attempt to control the national agronomy by introducing genetically-altered seeds.

"Meerut's farmers had stood against colonialism in 1857. Now, the time has come for the city to fight again against another kind of colonialism which not only wants to capture our agronomy but also wishes to play havoc with our health through genetically mutated seeds and pesticides," Shiva said.

Attention all farmers growing GMO crops in Josephine County (if any):

Please notify authorities you are growing said crops, in order that you may be penalized if you continue to grow them past Sept. 4.

That's the essence of a public notice due to be published by the county, following voter passage last year of a local measure banning the cultivation of genetically modified organisms, or GMOs.

County Counsel Wally Hicks said last week that his office is fine-tuning the notice in preparation for publication in the Daily Courier.

Following voter passage of the ban in May 2014, any farmers growing GMO crops had a 12-month window to harvest or otherwise get rid of the crops, according to the measure.

The notice being published states that farmers currently growing GMO crops must contact the Josephine County Sheriff's Office with their name, crop location and crop type, plus a phase-out plan to be done by Sept. 4.

A new Organic & Non-GMO Forum has been added to the agenda at the 10th annual Oilseed & Grain Trade Summit, which will take place this year in Minneapolis, September 30 - October 2, at the Hyatt Regency. This new forum will address growing concerns by major food manufacturers and retailers over lack of sufficient suppliers of ingredients to meet increasing consumer demand for organic and non-GMO foods.

The forum, a unique one-day event, is the first industry event to convene stakeholders from across the organic and non-GMO supply chain in order to address the growth, opportunities and significant supply chain challenges that this sector of the food value chain presents. Critical trade flow data, along with innovative strategies, and new management tools and systems designed specifically to meet these supply and logistic challenges, will be highlighted and covered in-depth by leading industry experts.

Key topics to be addressed at the new Organic & Non-GMO Forum include:

GMO Testing Protocols: What's the Current Science?

Defining and Comparing Costs, Yields and Benefits for Conventional, Non-GMO and Organic Farm Practices

What Does Labeling Mean? Mandatory Biotech Labeling vs. Voluntary Non-GMO Labeling

PANEL: Managing Co-Existence and Chain of Custody

PANEL: Can Industry Work Together to Support Farmer's Right to Choose?