"National Academies of Sciences Calls for Greater Transparency on GMOs"

"New report says genetically engineered crops are safe to eat but weed resistance and other unanswered environmental questions should be cause for more regulatory oversight."

"When it released a 408-page report on genetically engineered (GE) crops yesterday, the National Academies of Sciences (NAS) said claims about GE crops—both pro and con—“have created a confusing landscape for the public and policy-makers.” But the report itself might not clear up all the confusion.

While the NAS report says there is no conclusive evidence to suggest GE crops now on the market have any more “risks to human health” than conventional crops, it also stresses the need to avoid sweeping generalizations about these crops, which it says must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. It also says there is no “conclusive cause-and-effect evidence of environmental problems from the GE crops,” while detailing a great deal of information that the Academy deems cause for concern.

For example, the NAS report found that so many weeds have become resistant to herbicides in places where crops engineered to be herbicide-tolerant are grown that it is now a “major agricultural problem.” In addition, the Academy says more up-to-date methods of assessing GE crop safety are needed and that “regulators should focus on the extent to which novel characteristics of a plant variety (both intended and unintended) that are likely to pose a risk to human health and the environment.”"

Elizabeth Grossman reports for Civil Eats May 18, 2016.