Testbiotech is calling on the European Commission to withdraw its proposal for the future regulation of plants obtained from new genetic engineering techniques (or new genomic techniques, NGTs). With ten questions and answers published today, Testbiotech sets out the reasons for this demand. The proposal put forward in 2023 has become completely inadequate and already outdated in the face of current scientific findings, the development of new NGT processes and the use of artificial intelligence (AI).
The Commission proposes the far-reaching deregulation of plants obtained from new genetic engineering techniques. The intention is to introduce a threshold of 20 genetic changes below which no mandatory risk assessment would be required. However, there is no scientific justification for such a ‘magic’ threshold.
Even small changes resulting from applications of NGTs can have drastic effects that go beyond what is known from conventional breeding. One example as presented in a current Testbiotech background publication: Researchers found that it was possible to more than double the vitamin C (ascorbic acid) content in NGT lettuce by intervening in DNA sequences controlling gene regulation. However, this had side effects, making the lettuce more tolerant to the extremely toxic herbicide, paraquat. It can be assumed that this tolerance can also be observed under exposure to other herbicides.
It was already known that lettuce plants can react temporarily to stress (such as specific light sources) by increasing their ascorbic acid content. However, as far as Testbiotech knows, there is no example of corresponding permanent and heritable changes, making the NGT lettuce different to conventionally bred lettuce.
If such NGT plants were cultivated, it would mean that more herbicides could be used. There is also a risk that herbicide-resistant NGT weeds could emerge. Nevertheless, NGT plants would not necessarily need to be examined for environmental risks. Since NGT plants with less than 20 genetic changes would be exempted from mandatory risk assessment according to the Commission proposal, also unintended effects would remain unnoticed.
The number of such examples could increase in the future, i.a. because of the increased importance of AI in the development of NGT plants. This will significantly accelerate the process of developing new plants and substantially expand the range of applications. A recently published report gives an overview on the current development on AI and NGT plants. In future, ‘side effects’ such as herbicide resistance or insect toxicity may emerge more frequently and escape risk assessment.
According to the Commission proposal, almost all NGT plants would be equated to those obtained from conventional breeding. This means that they would neither be tested for risks nor labelled or monitored in the environment after approval. If the EU member states agree to this proposal, it would become practically impossible to effectively contain potential damage to humans and the environment. Such wrong decision-making would put the burden also on future generations.
Contact:
Christoph Then, info@testbiotech.org, Tel + 49 151 54638040
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