AGROLAB company news: We were there – “Gene Editing Regulation – Acknowledging Uncertainty”

A webinar on the above topic was held on 13 June, hosted by Lawrence Woodward, director of the organisation „A Bigger Conversation / Beyond GM“.  It was presented by three experts:

• Dr. Anne Ingeborg Myhr,
  Senior Vice President, Biotechnology and the circular economy at NORCE Norwegian Research Center 
• Dr. Sarah Agapito Tenfen,
  Research Professor at NORCE
• Dr. Margret Engelhard,
  Head of the GMO Regulation and Biosafety Department at the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation (BfN).

The central question was: In connection with the planned revision of the EU Genetic Engineering Act, are existing uncertainties about the effects of new genetic engineering discussed in an appropriate manner and across departments?

While many representatives of international agribusiness and politics largely welcome the project, critical scientists complain that the political decision-makers do not sufficiently consider the uncertainties associated with deregulation and the resulting risks for the safety, sustainability and appropriateness of the planned relaxations - a potentially fatal omission, which is not least due to the high complexity of the topic

The uncertainties that increase with complexity must be named in the phase of "post-normal" science in which we find ourselves and, above all, discussed much more broadly in public, because this technology, comparable to the discussion about AI, will have a similarly large influence on our future.

In the future, not only would non-labelled GMOs and products made from them legally enter the European market, but possible risks from the large-scale release of such GMOs would no longer be detected in time because there would no longer be any comprehensive testing. In a conceivable case of damage, the parties responsible would be free of any responsibility.

Agricultural multinationals are extensively patenting new plant traits that can be produced with the help of gene editing, such as drought resistance. An inexpensive and fast analytical routine proof, with which one can reliably identify with which procedure, for example, a point mutation in a plant gene has actually been achieved, is not available. No distinction can be made between "classical breeding" and novel genetic manipulation.

The expert panel was in no way concerned with demonising the new genetic engineering methods such as CRISPR-Cas and others in principle. Technical development cannot be stopped and certainly offers opportunities. But it must not be viewed solely from an economic perspective, but must be clearly regulated.

Our tip: Take the time to watch the recorded Webinar on Youtube. Discuss it with your children, grandchildren and friends and form your own fact-based opinion!

 
YOUR PLUS: We always try to think outside the box and identify analytical challenges at an early stage. We will continue to expand our range of detection methods for "classic" GMOs, but at the same time we must also point out methodological limitations that cannot be overcome at present.