U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced that the United States has joined with 12 other nations to support policies that enable agricultural innovation, including genome editing. The International Statement on Agricultural Applications of Precision Biotechnology was released in Geneva at the World Trade Organization (WTO) Committee on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures. “Precision biotechnologies such as genome …
ASTA Statement on FDA Plant and Animal Biotechnology Innovation Action Plan
The following is a statement from American Seed Trade Association (ASTA) President & CEO Andrew LaVigne regarding the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) new Action Plan on biotechnology innovation: “We’re encouraged by FDA’s announcement that the agency is moving forward on a plan to provide clarity and foster future innovation around evolving plant breeding methods. “ASTA submitted detailed comments on this topic to …
FDA Gottlieb, Abram on FDA’s New Plan to Advance Plant, Animal Biotechnology Innovation
Innovations in plant and animal biotechnology offer tremendous opportunities for advancing public health. Promising new technologies that can edit animal and plant genomes have the potential to improve human and animal health, animal well-being, food productivity and food security. New forms of biotechnology allow modification of living organisms, such as plants or animals, in order to produce a new product, …
Ag & Bio Engineering Chair Can’t Be Confined to a Cube
As she grew up in rural Arkansas, Kati Migliaccio’s interest in agricultural engineering came naturally. She liked math, science and problem solving, so she wanted an engineering career, but not one that confined her to an office or lab. “I wanted a career that involved engineering, with an outdoor component,” said Migliaccio, who was recently named chair of the agricultural …
EPA Awards Biofuel Waivers Worth Tens of Millions of Dollars
A Reuters report says the Environmental Protection Agency has awarded tens of millions of dollars’ worth of biofuel blending credits for this year to refiners HollyFrontier and Sinclair Oil. Two sources tell Reuters the refiners argued that the agency had wrongly denied them waivers from the country’s biofuels law as far back as 2014. It’s likely to add fuel to …
Biosecurity Important for Poultry Owners
USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is reminding those in the poultry industry of the need for biosecurity after the recent confirmation of a case of virulent Newcastle disease in California. As Rod Bain reports, it serves as a reminder that flock owners need to practice proper biosecurity measures. Biosecurity Important for Poultry Owners Sponsored ContentCIR Agriculture Harvester ProductsNovember …
UF/IFAS Researchers Hope Better Technology Produces Less Costly Ethanol
University of Florida scientists wondered how cheaply fuel ethanol can be made from inedible plant material – called biomass – using currently available technology. Their goal is to make this form of ethanol less expensively than gasoline and help reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. Currently, fuel ethanol is made from corn, which is edible. Corn also uses a lot of fertilizer and …
Growth Energy Pressing Trump on Biofuels
An open letter to President Trump in Monday’s editions of the New York Times, New York Post, and Wall Street Journal urges the president to “unleash rural growth by cutting the red tape holding back homegrown energy.” The letter by Growth Energy also condemned Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt’s actions that the organization says are “destroying demand for biofuels …
Biofuels Group Files Lawsuit against EPA’s Pruitt
A renewable fuels trade group has filed a lawsuit against Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt. The Advanced Biofuels Association is the first to sue Pruitt over the Renewable Fuel Standard waivers the EPA is dishing out to refineries, large and small. Association President Michael McAdams says the group is concerned that Pruitt is granting the exemptions in an arbitrary …
Farm Bureau Hails Publishing of Food Disclosure Standard
The following statement regarding the proposed National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard may be attributed to American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall. “The proposed National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard, published today by the Agriculture Department’s Agricultural Marketing Service, will give consumers a valuable resource for making informed decisions about food. Just as important, USDA is doing this the right way, …