Latest Resources
23 November 2012
Harmonisation of Africa’s seeds laws: a recipe for disaster
The core of the paper is focused on the pressures being exerted on African governments to adopt the 1991 Act of the International Union for the Protection of Plant Varieties (UPOV), particularly through regional harmonisation of plant variety protection (PVP) policies and laws. We also discuss the adverse impacts PVP laws will have on the […]
15 October 2012
Setting the record straight on the Seralini GM maize rat study: why the SA government must urgent...
In this briefing we respond to the main criticisms of the Seralini GM maize rat study (which have been appearing ad nauseum in the world’s mainstream media); provide some background as to the importance of the NK603 GM maize to the biotechnology industry (and hence the scale of their reaction); and place the attacks on […]
31 July 2012
Call on BASF, Bayer, and Syngenta to stop marketing highly hazardous pesticides
PAN Germany, a charitable organisation which provides information on the adverse effects of pesticides and promotes environmentally friendly and socially just alternatives. We will send the following letter in your name: To: Syngenta, Martin Taylor, Chairman of the Board of Directors Bayer CropScience, Sandra E. Peterson, Chief Executive Office BASF, Wayne T. Smith, Member of […]
24 March 2011
Debunking GM myths
The biotechnology industry has spread many myths about what GMOs can do. These are not based on fact and have been shown to be false in reality. Myths we often hear include: GMOs decrease pesticide use; they have massively increased yield potential; and have been thoroughly tested for safety. GM crops are not the norm. […]
9 March 2011
Alert to anti-GM activists in Egypt, India, Mexico and South Korea
South Africa’s GM maize flooding into your countries!!! The African Centre for Biosafety (ACB) has been monitoring the GMO landscape in South Africa since 2004. As recently as three years ago South Africa was importing millions of tons of GM maize from Argentina, used mainly in the animal feed industry. During 2010, South African maize […]
9 March 2011
How US sorghum seed distributions undermine the FAO Plant Treaty’s Multilateral System
New data from ICRISAT and the US Department of Agriculture and a comparison of genebank records indicates that half of more of ICRISAT’s sorghum genebank collection is also being distributed outside of the Multilateral System. This yawning gap creates an economic incentive for the Multilateral System and its benefit-sharing requirements to be avoided. USDA’s sorghum […]
19 February 2011
Agrochemical giant DuPont to sell Bolivian sorghum gene
In 2012 multinational giant DuPont plans to begin selling sorghum varieties containing a valuable gene taken from a sudan grass that was collected in 2006 in Bolivia. The gene, branded as ‘Inzen A II’, makes sorghum plants tolerant to herbicides made by DuPont and other companies, and was acquired under exclusive license from Kansas State […]
28 October 2010
Synthetic Biology in Africa: Recent Developments
By Gareth Jones and Mariam Mayet The focus of this paper is the emerging field of synthetic biology, in particular its implications for the African continent. Synthetic biology combines a number of scientific disciplines and is generally understood to involve the deliberate design of biological systems, using standardised components that have been created in a […]
17 April 2010
140 groups & scientists urge Senate to oppose GM clause in Global Food Security Act
140 groups & scientists urge Senate to oppose GM clause in Global Food Security Act 13 Apr 2010 Dear Colleagues: Today’s press release on the Global Food Security Act below, expressing the concerns of PAN, Food First, National Family Farm Coalition, the African Center for Biosafety and partners. And MANY MANY thanks to all of […]
17 April 2010
An Open Letter to Oxfam America
Sent from the following concerned groups: African Center on Biodiversity, South Africa (Mariam Mayet, Executive Director) Bharatiya Krishak Samaj/Indian Farmers Association, India (Krishan Bir Chaudhary, President) Center for Food Safety, U.S. (Debi Barker, International Director) CNOP (Coordination Nationale des organizations Paysannes/ National Coordination of Peasant Organizations), Mali (Ibrahima Coulibaly, President) Grassroots International, US (Nikhil Aziz, […]