High adoption of gene-edited crop seeds is expected in the next five to ten years, a new report by Rabobank suggests.

Although the exact timeline for the adoption of gene-editing (GE) seeds is hard to estimate, researchers expect that adoption rates will surpass 50% within five to ten years.

Rabobank's report says that GE technology has the potential to benefit the entire food supply chain, from producers to consumers.

A new technology that captures air pollution and uses sunlight to convert it into nitrate on the leaf surface of a crop has been developed by Lincoln-based Crop Intellect.

Called R-Leaf, it uses a process known as photocatalysis to break down nitrous oxide and turn it into an essential crop nutrient, offering the potential to reduce both farm emissions and the industry’s reliance on synthetic nitrogen.

Against a background of rollercoaster fertiliser markets and environmental concerns, the technology is being feted as a ground-breaking development that will allow farmers to make better use of nitrogen fertiliser and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions associated with its use.

The Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Marie-Claude Bibeau today announced how Canada will handle crop cultivars that contain gene-editing as part of the breeding process. Bibeau says the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is officially moving ahead with Part V(5) of the Seed Regulations changes that have been under consultation since 2021. Last May, Health Canada released guidelines regarding the approval of plants with non-novel traits, prompting the organic sector to ask for more clarification on how gene-edited varieties would be kept separate from genetically-modified organisms (GMOs).

The announcement means that varieties or cultivars developed with gene-editing will not be considered a GMO under Canadian rules. Bibeau says that gene-editing ushers in a new era for plant breeding techniques, replicating conventional methods more quickly, adding that the scientific consensus is that gene-edited crops are as safe for humans, animals, and the environment as those created through conventional breeding.

Industry bodies have reacted with anger after the government ditched plans for an English horticulture strategy.

The promise to put together a plan for the sector, which is battling sky-high input costs and labour shortages, was made in the government’s wider food strategy published in June last year.

But this week, Defra farming minister Mark Spencer said the pledge was being scrapped because the sector operates in a “complex, ever-evolving commercial and political landscape”.

Health Canada has added Pairwise’s gene edited mustard greens to its list of “non-novel” foods. Through a voluntary process, Pairwise notified Health Canada about the mustard greens (Brassica juncea) that the company has bred using the tools of gene editing, or CRISPR, to reduce the natural pungency of the greens, thereby improving their flavor.

Pairwise provided the voluntary notification on March 7, 2023, and received a response from Health Canada the same day confirming the Agency would add our mustard greens to its list of non-novel foods developed through plant breeding and intended as food in Canada. According to Health Canada, these plants aren’t subject to pre-market assessment before their use in the Canadian food supply, as they are considered “non-novel.”

Government needs to act ‘swiftly’ to extend parallel imports and permits for plant protection products until a proper regulatory process is in place, with the NFU warning the industry is running out of time.

Parallel trade permits have allowed plant protection products to be imported into the UK, sold and used, based on regulatory assessment work done in another EU country but sales of parallel products will end on June 30.

Losing the permits, will inevitably lead to price rises, less availability for growers and will directly impact crop resistance and could cost the sector £10 million, the NFU warned at its council meeting this week.

Reducing river pollution and lowering protein imports for livestock feed are two potential gains from new work at the University of Leeds research farm into using pig manure as a feedstock for the black soldier fly.

The university has partnered with insect technology company Entocycle to host a self-contained insect-raising unit on its campus, at the Centre for Innovation Excellence in Livestock’s National Pig Centre – the UK’s largest and most advanced pig research facility.

The project will evaluate manure and slurries as a feedstock for the black soldier fly and other insect species under high-density and environmentally controlled conditions. It is hoped that manure-fed black soldier fly larvae could one day be used as feed for livestock, to replace imported high-protein feeds such as soya bean and fish meal.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has released a report on food safety considerations for regulating foods derived from gene editing (also known as “genome editing”) to help national authorities develop and implement policies and regulatory criteria for food products derived from gene editing.

The report provides a review of food safety related issues in applying gene editing for food production, including the applicability of existing Codex Alimentarius principles and guidelines for relevant food safety assessments, and offers key considerations for food safety regulations.

FAO concludes that the possible effects of gene editing on food safety, quality and trade are not expected to be much different from such effects on foods derived from pre-existing breeding techniques. Therefore, the relevant guidelines developed by Codex remain applicable for addressing the safety and fair trade of foods derived from gene editing.

New research has reaffirmed scientific evidence of the crucial benefits of livestock systems and meat to society.

The peer-reviewed study, published in the scientific journal Animal Frontiers , provides evidence of livestock and meat’s benefits for health, sustainability, food security and socio-economic development.

The study’s authors are among nearly 1,000 scientists around the world who have warned that livestock systems are “too precious to become the victim of simplification, reductionism or zealotry.”

The prices of food rose at the fastest rate in more than 45 years in the 12 months to February 2023, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) says.

The annual inflation rate in the food category was 18.2%, up from 16.8% in the year to January 2023. Indicative modelled by ONS suggests that the rate would have last been higher in August 1977, when it was estimated to be 21.9%.

The largest contributor to the rise in food inflation was vegetables, which rose by 18% in the year to February 2023 compared with 15.5% in January. There have been reports of shortages of salad produce and other vegetables due to the bad weather in southern Europe and Africa.