Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68JANUARY 2017 59 STATUSNigeria THE NATIONAL Biotechnology Development Agency reports genetically modified beans will be available in commercial quantity across Nigerian markets on or before 2019. Lucy Ogbadu, the NABDA director general and a professor, said this in Abuja at the November edition of Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology, revealed that Nigeria would soon witness abundant beans as the GM cowpeas (or beans) would be released into the market in large quantities in two or three years’ time. She said the cowpea, which is currently undergoing field trials, is safe and wouldn’t pose any health risk to Nigerians. “Rules are being followed in its production. Our Ethical Committee is working day and night to ensure that no rule is breached. Nigerians should be rest assured that the GM beans and other crops which will be available later in the country would be safe for consumption. In 2-3 years’ time, cowpea should be ready in commercial quantity in the country,” Prof Ogbadu said. She dismissed “the insinu- ation” that GM foods are unhealthy; saying over 100 Nobel Laureates had signed a petition to guarantee its safety. Source: Daily Trust. STATUSPakistan DESPITE PERCEIVED failure of genetically modified (GM) cotton seed in Pakistan and official reports confirming the presence of advanced varieties of Bt cotton seed in use, the Punjab government is reportedly planning to acquire two more advanced varieties from a multinational GM technology provider. The agriculture department held a meeting to discuss an update on the negotiations with the GM technology provider and muster support of stakeholders in favor of imported varieties of Bt gene. The meeting — attended by officials, researchers, academia, growers, textile producers and seed companies — was a follow-up of a previous meeting held last month to discuss acquisition of advanced gene technologies and related issues. Sources said the agriculture department was planning to buy Bollgard II and Roundup Ready Flex (RRF) genes from Monsanto under the Kissan Package 2016-17, apparently for better seed quality resisting pests and weed controls amid reservations by agriculture scientists and cotton growers. Source: DAWN. STATUSVietnam THE FIELD TRIAL of genetically modified maize at Trung Son Commune (Do Luong district) in 2015 with 0.5 acre area has gained high productivity and economic efficiency. Trung Son commune has 560 hectares of agricultural land, in which 80 hectares is specialized for maize. In 2016, Trung Son expanded the area to 6 hectares for 55 farmers. The result of evaluation has shown that GM maize is high yielding. Forty-eight tons of grain were harvested in 6 hectares of GM maize area in Trung Son commune this year. The advantage of GM maize is its insect resistance. However, the price of GM maize seeds is higher compared to others, which refrains farmers to purchase and apply. On average, non-GM maize seed price range is between 90,000- 130,000VND/kg, while GM maize is priced at 210,000VND/kg. Although farmers might have to pay more for this seed, they will save money from needing less pesticides and herbicides. The Department of Agricultural and Rural Development in Nghe An plans to expand the GM maize cultivation area to enhance maize productivity and quality. Source: International Service for the Acquisition of AgriBiotech Applications. PACKING & PALLETIZING COMPANY PPC PROVIDING CUSTOM BAGGING, TAGGING AND PALLETIZING SOLUTIONS BULK BAG FILLER PALLETIZER T: (204) 331-3000 www.ppcinc.ca E: tp@ppcinc.ca TAG PLACER