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The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Friday it was leaning towards a long-awaited approval of Dow AgroSciences' genetically altered "Enlist" corn and soybeans that have been heavily criticized by groups who say they will harm the environment. The Enlist seeds are designed to be used in combination with a new herbicide developed by Dow that combines the weed-killers 2,4-D, known for its use in the Agent Orange defoliant, and glyphosate.

Three Chinese nationals - including one who attended a gala dinner for the then-vice president of China - have been charged in two separate cases of trying to steal seed-technology, trade secrets under development in the United States, authorities said on Thursday. After a two-year investigation, a executive working for a Chinese conglomerate was arrested on charges of stealing inbred corn seed from production fields in Iowa and Illinois and trying to smuggle it into China, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa Nicholas Klinefeldt said.

Monsanto Co, the world's largest seed company, said Tuesday that a deal with Danish company Novozymes to form a long-term research and development alliance should accelerate the release of microbial-based products designed to improve crop production. The news helped to slightly lift shares in St. Louis-based Monsanto, and analysts said while the biological work is not likely to offer a near-term revenue boost, it does hold long-term promise.

Both sides of the costly and high-stakes GMO labeling battle in Washington state say they see an even bigger national fight ahead despite the apparent defeat of the mandatory labeling measure by Washington state voters this week. The measure died 47.05 percent to 52.95 percent, according to results updated Thursday night by the Washington Secretary of State's office as results continued to trickle in. The likely loss followed a similar defeat last year in California when a ballot initiative there also failed to pass.

DuPont Pioneer, the agricultural seed unit of DuPont, said Friday that it has aligned with farm machinery company Deere & Co in a race against rival Monsanto Co to provide farmers with enhanced "precision agriculture" analyses aimed at maximizing crop production. The programs these companies will roll out next year will give farmers guidance on a number of field management decisions, including planting, crop treatment, pest control and even the best time to harvest.

A lobbying group for major U.S. food manufacturers continues to run afoul of campaign finance laws in the way that it has contributed funds to block a measure that would require labeling of genetically modified foods in Washington state, according to a statement issued Wednesday by the state's attorney general. State Attorney General Bob Ferguson said he will amend a lawsuit filed October 16 to raise the total amount he alleges the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) illegally concealed to $11 million, from the $7.2 million in the original complaint.

Major U.S. food and chemical companies are pouring millions of dollars into efforts to block approval of a ballot initiative in Washington state that would make it the first in the United States to require labeling of foods containing genetically modified crops. Despite early strong support for the measure, a recent poll suggests sentiment against the measure, known as I-522, is growing amid an onslaught of corporate-financed advertising ahead of the Nov. 5 referendum. Voters will decide whether many common grocery items containing ingredients from genetically altered crops should be labeled as such.

A lobbying group for major U.S. food manufacturers has violated campaign finance laws in its attempt to block a measure that would require labeling of genetically modified foods in Washington state, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday by the state's attorney general. State Attorney General Bob Ferguson alleges that the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) illegally collected and spent more than $7 million while shielding the identity of its contributors.

Monsanto Co, the world's largest seed company, reported a deeper quarterly loss on Wednesday as seed sales slipped, and announced the acquisition of a high-tech climate data firm that it touted as a "transformational" growth engine. Investors initially appeared unimpressed with the $930 million purchase of Climate Corp and instead eyed Monsanto's 2014 profit forecast and a drop in gross profit in its key corn and soybean seed business in the latest quarter. Monsanto shares were down 1.4 percent to $103.58 in mid-morning trading.

A food-safety advocacy group demanded on Friday that the U.S. government investigate how a Washington state alfalfa crop became tainted with a genetically modified trait that was illegal when the seed was purchased. The Center for Food Safety said it was basing its legal petition on evidence that the seed used by farmer Joseph Peila to plant the crop was purchased in the year before the biotech variety was granted final regulatory approval by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2011.