Articles

Organic growers and food safety advocates on Tuesday condemned an advisory report to the Agriculture Department claiming its recommendations would be costly for farmers who want to protect their conventional crops from being contaminated by genetically modified (GMO), also known as genetically engineered (GE), varieties. The groups were responding to a report submitted Monday afternoon to the U.S. Department of Agriculture by a committee assigned by USDA with studying how best biotech agriculture could "co-exist" with organic and conventional agriculture.

Hostess Brands Inc, the bankrupt maker of Twinkies snack cakes and loaves of Wonder Bread, is seeking a U.S. court's permission to go out of business after failing to get wage and benefit cuts from thousands of its striking bakery workers. The 82-year-old Hostess, which has about $2.5 billion in sales and is one of the largest wholesale bakers and distributors of breads and snack cakes in the United States, filed the request with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York early Friday morning. A hearing on the matter is set for Monday.

A standoff between Hostess Brands Inc. and thousands of its bakery workers was heading for a showdown after the expiry of a return-to-work deadline, with both sides saying they will accept the demise of the historic maker of Twinkies and Wonder Bread. The bankrupt company is on its last legs, according to management. The company had set a deadline of 5 p.m. EST (2200 GMT) on Thursday and said that unless enough employees returned to work by that time, the company would ask a bankruptcy court on Friday for permission to liquidate.

The failure on Tuesday of a California ballot initiative that would have mandated labeling of genetically modified foods is not a death knell for those seeking nationwide labeling, U.S. labeling proponents said. President Barack Obama's re-election could be a boost, as he is seen, in general terms, as being supportive of labeling. Still, efforts to force change at a federal level could face an uphill climb. "The federal effort is a monumental task without a state victory somewhere," said Michele Simon, a public health attorney from California.

California voters rejected a ballot measure that would have made the state the first in the nation to require special labeling of foods with genetically modified ingredients. The measure was defeated 53 percent to 47 percent, according to final results from Tuesday's election. Proposition 37, also known as the "Right to Know" initiative, was supported by more than 60 percent of likely voters in early polls. It sprang from a grass-roots effort in a state that has long led the way on a variety of environmental issues and has a growing organic and "local food" movement.

Major food and seed companies appear to be on the verge of defeating a California ballot initiative that, if passed on Tuesday, would create the first labeling requirement for genetically modified foods in the United States. In a campaign reminiscent of this summer's successful fight against a proposed tobacco tax in California, opposition funded by Monsanto Co, DuPont, PepsiCo Inc and others unleashed waves of TV and radio advertisements against Proposition 37 and managed to turn the tide of public opinion.

The U.S. seed industry said Wednesday it was a step closer to establishing a broad framework for the handling of genetically modified seed technology as product patents expire. The American Seed Trade Association (ASTA) and the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) said they have completed the first phase of an industry accord that addresses post-patent, single-trait seed biotechnology.

Heavy advertising spending by Monsanto Co and others opposed to a California ballot proposal to require labels on grocery products containing genetically modified organisms is paying off, according to a new poll that shows the measure has slipped into a virtual tie. Forty-four percent of California voters now support the measure, while 42 percent oppose it and 13 percent are undecided, according to the latest USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times Poll released on Thursday.

More investment is needed to increase food production in Africa and Asia as rising demand and scarce resources leave millions of people vulnerable to hunger, a corporate-backed report said on Wednesday. Only 13 percent of Sub-Saharan Africa's total food demand in 2050 would be met without more investment in such things as technology and infrastructure, according to the Global Harvest Initiative public policy advocacy group in Washington. East Asia would be able to satisfy 74 percent of total food demand by 2050, the group's third annual report said.

With California set to vote in November on labeling of food made from genetically modified crops, pressure is mounting on the federal government to tighten regulation of these crops and the foods they become. The "Right to Know" measure on California's ballot November 6 would require labeling of any food sold in the state containing ingredients made from genetically modified crops (GMOs). If the measure passes, it would be the first such U.S. labeling law, and so far polls have shown strong support for the measure.