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Agricultural Biotechnologies
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The News items relate to applications of biotechnologies in food and agriculture in developing countries and their major focus is on the activities of FAO, other UN agencies/bodies and the 15 CGIAR research centres. The News items cover all food and agricultural sectors (crops, forestry, fisheries/aquaculture, livestock, agro-industry) and a wide range of biotechnologies (e.g. use of molecular markers, artificial insemination, triploidisation, biofertilisers, micropropagation, genomics, genetic modification etc.). New documents are included as News if they are freely available on the web and, for people who can't download them or who wish further information, an e-mail contact is also provided. The News service was launched in January 2002 and all News items posted since then (there were 800 in the first 9 years) are available here. The news and event items on this website are also disseminated through an e-mail newsletter called FAO-BiotechNews that is published in six different versions, one per language i.e. Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish. To subscribe, send a message to [email protected] indicating which e-mail addresses are to be subscribed and in which language they wish to receive the newsletter.
15/05/2002
The World Health Organization has just published a 241-page report entitled Genomics and Human Health that deals with the likely impact of the genomics revolution on world health, with a primary focus on the implications for developing countries. Although dealing little with the implications of genomics for food and agriculture, many of the topics discussed in the report (such as the latest advances in genomics, the potential impact of intellectual property rights, the relative weight to be given to genomics research versus research into more conventional and well-tried areas, the lack of biotechnology and information technology development in many developing countries and, finally, biosafety and ethical considerations) are highly relevant. See a press release at http://www.who.int/inf/en/pr-2002-34.html. The report is at http://www3.who.int/whosis/genomics/genomics_report.cfm (in English, with a French or Spanish summary) or contact [email protected] for more information.
14/05/2002
ISNAR Briefing Paper 47, entitled A conceptual framework for implementing biosafety: Linking policy, capacity and regulation and co-authored by M.A. McLean, R.J. Frederick, P. Traynor, J.I. Cohen, and J. Komen has just been put on the web (12 pages). The framework described is based on contributions made at an international consultation convened by the International Service for National Agricultural Research and held in Washington DC, United States, 23-26 July 2001. See ftp://ftp.cgiar.org/isnar/publicat/bp-47.pdf or contact [email protected] for more information.
19/04/2002
FAO Research and Technology Paper 8, entitled "Agricultural Biotechnology for Developing Countries - Results of an Electronic Forum", has been published. It presents a report of the first six e-mail conferences hosted by the FAO Electronic Forum on Biotechnology in Food and Agriculture from March 2000 to May 2001. Each conference was moderated, lasted roughly two months and focused on agricultural biotechnology in developing countries. The first four dealt with the appropriateness of currently available biotechnologies in the crop, fishery, forestry and livestock sectors, while the remaining two dealt with the implications of agricultural biotechnology for hunger and food security and the impact of intellectual property rights. The publication includes the background and summary documents for each of the conferences, as well as providing an introduction; information about participation in the conferences; general conclusions and, finally, additional references. See http://www.fao.org/DOCREP/004/Y2729E/Y2729E00.HTM or contact FAO to request a copy.
18/04/2002
FAO Research and Technology Paper 9, entitled "Glossary of Biotechnology for Food and Agriculture" has been published. The glossary is a revised, augmented version of the "Glossary of Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering", published by FAO in 1999 and co-authored by A. Zaid, H.G. Hughes, E. Porceddu and F. Nicholas. In 2001, the process of revising the Glossary was undertaken to update the definitions of this rapidly evolving field and to enrich the number of terms defined. It now includes about 450 new terms, about 100 old terms have been deleted and it contains a total of 3,196 terms and related definitions. The publication is available at http://www.fao.org/DOCREP/004/Y2775E/Y2775E00.HTM or, as a searchable database, at http://www.fao.org/biotech/index_glossary.asp. Alternatively, contact FAO to request a copy.
17/04/2002
On 21-23 March 2002, about 50 delegates attended an expert consultation at the FAO Regional Office in Bangkok, Thailand, jointly organised by FAO and the Asia Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions. The consultation was called to review the status of agricultural biotechnology in the region, the role of the private sector, issues linked to intellectual property rights and biosafety as well as the ethical and social aspects of the development and adoption of the new agricultural technologies. See an FAO press release ( http://www.fao.or.th/Press_Releases/Rap02-07.htm) or a brief report on the meeting ( http://www.fao.or.th/APAARI_Biotech.htm) or contact [email protected] for more information.
16/04/2002
The 6th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP 6) took place in The Hague, Netherlands, 7-19 April 2002. Some of the documents provided prior to the meeting, e.g. reports on the impacts of applying genetic use restriction technologies or on the status of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, are relevant to applications of biotechnology in food and agriculture in developing countries. See http://www.biodiv.org/meetings/cop-06.asp (most documents are available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish) or contact [email protected].
13/04/2002
The Institute for New Technologies (INTECH) of the United Nations University (UNU) has just published issue 2 of Technology Policy Briefs, which focus on topical technology policy issues for developing countries. This 12-page issue (in English, but with abstracts in French and Spanish) focuses on agricultural biotechnology and contains six short articles. See http://www.intech.unu.edu/publications/technology_policy/tpb_v1_02_2002.pdf or contact [email protected]. The UNU was established in 1973 by the UN General Assembly and is engaged in research into the pressing global problems of human survival, development and welfare that are the concern of the United Nations and its agencies, with due attention to the social sciences and the humanities as well as natural sciences, pure and applied.
12/04/2002
The March 2002 edition of OECD Biotechnology Update is available (it is sent roughly every 6 months). It contains 14 pages with information about news, events and recent publications stemming from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development`s activities related to biotechnology. The new edition includes, among others, e-mail contacts and weblinks for accessing recent publications on unique identification codes for transgenic plants and on "Modern biotechnology and agricultural markets: A discussion of selected issues". View it at http://www.oecd.org/pdf/M00027000/M00027764.pdf (PDF, 161 KB) or contact [email protected].
11/04/2002
The International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI) has recently placed on its website "Application of Genetic Markers to Forest Tree Species" (a draft report to IPGRI of the project "Developing Decision-making Strategies on Priorities for Conservation and Use of Forest Genetic Resources") by Gene Namkoong and Mathew Koshy. The document is available at http://www.ipgri.cgiar.org/publications/pubsurvey.asp?id_publication=737 (PDF, 116 KB). Note, a minimum amount of information - name, organisation and e-mail address - must be given to download it) or contact [email protected].
02/04/2002
At the 3rd Session of the Codex Ad Hoc Intergovernmental Task Force on Foods Derived from Biotechnology, held in Yokohama, Japan, 4-8 March 2002, two main texts were adopted that have important implications for risk analysis and safety assessment of novel foods - the Draft Principles for the Risk Analysis of Foods Derived from Modern Biotechnology and the Draft Guideline for the Conduct of Food Safety Assessment of Foods Derived from Recombinant-DNA Plants. See http://www.codexalimentarius.net/reports.asp or contact [email protected]. The draft texts will be submitted to the 25th Session of the FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius Commission (in mid-2003) for final adoption.
01/04/2002
The 3rd Meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety takes place in The Hague, Netherlands on 22-26 April 2002. The meeting documents, which cover themes such as the handling, transport, packaging and identification of living modified organisms, are available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish at http://www.biodiv.org/doc/meeting.asp?wg=ICCP-03 or contact [email protected] for more information.
13/03/2002
The 26th FAO Regional Conference for the Near East took place in Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran, 9-13 March 2002. One of the documents prepared for the meeting is entitled Biotechnology for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in the Near East Region and includes a description of the current status and trends regarding biotechnology in the region. See http://www.fao.org/Unfao/Bodies/RegConferences/nerc26/26nerc-e.htm (in English and Arabic) or contact [email protected] to request a copy.
11/03/2002
The 4th Session of the Interim Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (ICPM) (the governing body for the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC)) took place at FAO Headquarters, Rome, 11-15 March 2002. The IPPC is a multilateral treaty administered through the IPPC Secretariat located in FAO Headquarters. In coordination with the Convention on Biologicial Diversity, a working group of the ICPM is developing specifications for an international standard for phytosanitary measures on pest risk analysis for living modified organisms (LMOs). The document on "Specifications for standards on living modified organisms" (Agenda item 5.6) is available http://www.ippc.int/cds_ippc_prod/IPP/En/default.htm (in Arabic, Chinese, English, French and Spanish) or contact [email protected] to request a copy.
10/03/2002
The 1st Session of the Committee on Fisheries (COFI), Sub-Committee on Aquaculture takes place in Beijing, China, 18-22 April 2002. A working document entitled Aquaculture development and management: status, issues and prospects, which also considers the role of biotechnology, has been prepared by FAO for the Session. It is available at http://www.fao.org/fi/meetings/cofi/cofi_aq/cofi_aq1/default.asp (in Arabic, Chinese, English, French and Spanish) or can be requested from [email protected] .
09/03/2002
The Food Safety Programme of the World Health Organisation (WHO) has commissioned an evidence-based study of the human health and development implications of GM organisms and food products. The study began in February 2002 and a draft study report is to be completed by late 2002. The study involves a wide range of stakeholders, including FAO, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and other international organisations. For further information, contact Dr Jørgen Schlundt, Coordinator, Food Safety Programme at [email protected].
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