Tag: life sciences

According to the EU's biotech strategy review, biotech companies lack risk capital and member states' regulatory systems remain disparate. NGOs denounce lack of transparency in the review process.

A new report from the American National Research Council (NRC) says that global efforts are needed to anticipate and prevent potential misuse of advances in life sciences.

Life sciences and their influence on education and culture in today's society are the focus of debates at a conference in Genoa.

A study on the possibility and consequences of co-existence of GMO and non-GMO crops has been carried out by the EU joint Research Centre, but it has not been made public yet. It highlights the practical difficulties and the costs of co-existence. Greenpeace has claimed that the results are kept secret because of its sensitive content.

A leading environmental NGO, Friends of the Earth, has called on the Commission and the EU Member States to suspend a genetically modified T-25 maize after a key British scientist admitted that the safety tests had been flawed.

The debate on human cloning in the EU is expected to heat up following a report by an Italian fertility doctor, Dr Severino Antinori, that one of his patients is eight weeks pregnant with an embryo produced using cloning technology.

Agriculture Commissioner, Franz Fischler, criticised the EU for "muddling-through policy" in the area of biotechnology, and warned that Europe could be left behind on new technologies. In an address to the AGRIBEX Food Fair in Brussels on 13 February, Mr Fischler stated that "it is high time that Europe finds a way to address questions" dealing with genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

A biotechnology strategy for the EU, adopted by the Commission on 23 January, raises hopes for a new start for the European biotech industry, stalled for years by legislative obstacles. The paper, entitled Life Sciences and Biotechnology: A Strategy for Europe, warns that prejudice against biotechnology has cost Europe in terms of jobs, growth and prosperity.