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Sudanese authorities have seized a shipment of genetically modified (GM) soybeans at Port Sudan harbour, stating that it is currently ‘illegal’ to import GM foodstuffs into the country. It has not been confirmed where the GM soybeans came from but according to a Sustainable Pulse source in the country they are from the US.

In a victory for the GMO Free movement in Australia the Tasmanian Government announced Thursday that it has extended the state’s ban on genetically modified crops and animals indefinitely.

Three of the world's largest agrochemical companies have filed a lawsuit in Hawaii to block a law enacted on the island of Kauai in November to limit the planting of biotech crops and the use of pesticides.

There was a time when food was food. You ate it and were glad of it. What could be more “natural” than that? But that was back in earlier times when most food came either from your own farm or from stores that bought food from nearby farms.

China continued to reject corn cargoes from the U.S. that contained an unapproved genetically modified variety while accepting a first bulk-carrier shipment of the grain from Ukraine. The quarantine agency’s newest figure cited by Xinhua was 56,000 tons more than it announced on Dec. 19, showing the government’s continued screening of U.S. corn and and dried distillers’ grains, or DDGS, for the unapproved insect resistanr MIR 162 gene. Net corn sales to China from the U.S. in the seven days through Dec. 26 dropped by 116,000 tons from the previous week, according to a report on the website of U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Compositional differences in soybeans on the market: glyphosate accumulates in Roundup Ready GM soybeans

•Glyphosate tolerant GM soybeans contain high residues of glyphosate and AMPA.

•Soybeans from different agricultural practices differ in nutritional quality.

•Organic soybeans showed a more healthy nutritional profile than other soybeans.

•Organic soy contained more sugars, protein and zinc, but less fibre and omega-6.

•This study rejects that GM soy is “substantially equivalent” to non-GM soybeans.

A GMO labeling battle is rumbling in the United States, with those demanding full disclosure of genetically modified organisms in food products pitted against big companies.

The Naxxar local council is planning to prohibit the use of herbicides to control weeds after a motion was presented to the council calling for its ban, while it also intends issuing a call for tender for bidders willing to abide by the council’s decision and use alternative methods to kill weeds, this newspaper has learnt. At the time, this newspaper had learnt that one of the precautionary measures displayed on the label of the glyphosate-based weed killer used across the world, Roundup, recommends that the product is only used in fine weather and in temperatures not exceeding 25°Celsius. This argument had also been supported by the environment ministry.

Critics question the wisdom of producing food for foreign consumption in regions where many go hungry — especially when the land deals displace local subsistence farmers. One way that local farmers can be served is by sharing with them the latest knowledge about small-scale, “agroecological” or low-input sustainable farming, which does not require costly agrochemicals, genetically modified seeds, and mechanised farm equipment in order to succeed. Agronomists have developed inexpensive ways to boost the productivity of small family plots, which can produce equal and, in some cases, higher yields than large plantations do.

Brazil’s Judicial Commission has tabled a bill allowing for genetically modified terminator seeds until February 2014, when it will again take up the topic. “Brazil is the frontline. If the agro-industry breaks the moratorium here, they’ll break it everywhere,” said Maria José Guazzelli, of Centro Ecológico, which represents a coalition of Brazilian NGOs.