Latest Resources
12 September 2008
Sorghum trials permitted, 12 September 2008
AFRICAN HERITAGE CROPS THREATENED BY SOUTH AFRICA GMO DECISION An Appeal Board established by the Minister of Land Affairs and Agriculture has overturned a landmark decision by a South African GMO authority on 15 June 2006, to refuse the experimentation of sorghum, a prized African heritage crop. The Council for Scientific Industrial Research (CSIR), has […]
13 May 2008
Geraniums Stop that Cough – Pelargonium Factsheet
Rural community of South Africa stands up against pelargonium-patents and biopiracy. The Alice community, living in the Eastern Cape area of South Africa, in close collaboration with the African Center for Biosafety and supported by the Berne Declaration (Switzerland), the Church Development Service (EED) and “Kein Patent auf Leben” (Germany), has challenged two European patents […]
30 April 2008
“Knowledge not for Sale” – A Briefing Paper by the African Centre for Biosafety
The African Centre for Biosafety (ACB) is a non-profit, activist NGO based in South Africa, specialising in promoting biosafety and challenging biopiracy, agrofuels and the commodification of biological resources and associated traditional knowledge. Read more here.
5 March 2008
Hot potato in South Africa
GM potatoes in South Africa: a critical analysis, is an ACB publication written by Vanessa Black. Read here.
5 March 2008
New GM Potato Book: Executive Summary
In 2001, the South African Agricultural Research Council (ARC) began conducting field trials with potatoes genetically modified to contain a Bt gene Cry1Ia1 (formerly BtCryV). This novel gene is intended to protect the plants and potato tubers from infestations of the Potato tuber moth (Phthorimaea operculella). This research is not home grown or ‘truly South […]
5 March 2008
GM potato rejected in year of potato
The UN General Assembly has declared 2008 to be the ‘international year of the potato’. Unbeknown to the public, the South Africa government has allowed the Agricultural Research Council (ARC), supported by USAID and Michigan State University, to experiment with GM potatoes. All though South Africans on average eat 29 kilograms of potatoes a year, […]
4 March 2008
GM Potatoes face import ban & rejection
GM potatoes rejected in Year of Potato GM potatoes face import bans and rejection The United Nations General Assembly has declared 2008 to be the ‘International Year of the Potato’ in celebration of the potato – one of the world’s best loved foods. Yet, South Africa seems hell bent on messing with the humble potato. […]
27 February 2008
First GMO Seed Scandal in Africa: SA Contaminated the Continent
Seed maize from South Africa, claiming to be pure, has been found to be contaminated with genetically modified organisms (GMOs). The South African branch of US seed giant Pioneer Hi-Bred recently exported contaminated maize seeds to unsuspecting Kenyan farmers. The maize seeds are contaminated with a genetically engineered variety-MON810- belonging to Monsanto that has not […]
20 February 2008
ACB’s Updated GMO biohazard maps
Their ability to escape into the environment is well known. Their safety for people with allergies remains in question. Yet we continue to experiment with genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and some have even been commercially released. And yes, they may be growing, undetected, unmarked and right out in the open in a field near you. […]
19 February 2008
The Geopolitics of Agrofuels
OPENING PANDORA’S BOX: GMOS, FUELISH PARADIGMS AND SOUTH AFRICA’s BIOFUELS STRATEGY. Read here.