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A U.S. appeals court ruled on Thursday that federal regulators erred in allowing an insecticide developed by Dow AgroSciences onto the market, canceling its approval and giving environmentalists a major victory.The ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in San Francisco, is significant for commercial beekeepers and others who say a dramatic decline in bee colonies needed to pollinate key food crops is tied to widespread use of a class of insecticides known as neonicotinoids. Critics say the Environmental Protection Agency is failing to evaluate the risks thoroughly.

Combatants in a national food fight over labeling genetically modified products are gearing up for a showdown in the U.S. Senate, campaign leaders said on Tuesday.The tactics range from old-fashioned lobbying to modern social media campaigns, and both sides say it is too early to tell who will prevail.

U.S.-based Monsanto Co. ÿsaid Wednesday it is walking away from efforts to acquire Swiss rival Syngenta AG, which has rejected a recently sweetened offer.Monsanto said it still believes in the value of a combination of the two agricultural seed and chemical giants, but will focus on building its core business and meeting long-term growth objectives.

A food safety advocacy group sued an arm of the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Tuesday, saying it illegally withheld public information on genetically engineered crops.The lawsuit, brought by the Center for Food Safety (CFS) against the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), claims the regulator has routinely failed to respond as required to requests for records that relate to many concerns with the GMO crops.

U.S. regulators have relied on flawed and outdated research to allow expanded use of an herbicide linked to cancer, and new assessments should be urgently conducted, according to a column published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Wednesday.There are two key factors that necessitate regulatory action to protect human health, according to the column: a sharp increase in herbicide applied to widely planted genetically modified (GMO) crops used in food, and a recent World Health Organization (WHO) determination that the most commonly used herbicide, known as glyphosate, is probably a human carcinogen.

A type of insecticide under scrutiny by the White House because of fears about its impact on honey bees has been found in more than half of streams sampled across the United States, according to a study by government researchers published Tuesday.The study, published in Environmental Chemistry and conducted by U.S. Geological Survey researchers, found that five types of insecticides that are known as neonicotinoids were present in varying degrees in 149 samples taken from 48 streams.

Several U.S. farm and consumer groups are working on strategies to derail a proposed tie-up of Monsanto Co and agricultural seeds and chemicals rival Syngenta AG, saying a combination of the market leaders would spell fewer and higher-priced products.Coalitions of opponents are being formed and market analyses being done, moves that underscore the hurdles U.S.-based Monsanto will face in any deal to take over Swiss-based Syngenta.

The U.S. House of Representatives on Thursday passed a hotly debated measure that blocks any mandatory labeling of foods made with genetically engineered crops, including pre-empting a state law set to take effect next year in Vermont. Dubbed the Safe and Accurate Food Labeling Act by supporters, but the "Deny Americans the Right to Know" or DARK Act, by opponents, the measure was approved 275-150 with 45 Democrats voting for the bill.

As Monsanto Co struggles to convince rival Syngenta AG to discuss a potential merger, the seed and agrochemical giant is also wooing U.S. farmers, aiming to ease concerns about the proposed tie-up that could prompt regulatory challenges.Company executives have been criss-crossing the U.S. heartland, meeting with soybean and corn growers and a range of powerful farm lobby organizations to seek their support, company and farm officials say. And the company has launched a website promoting the benefits of the proposed $45 billion acquisition of Syngenta, which the Swiss company has thus far rebuffed.

U.S. food companies and other opponents of genetically modified food labeling notched a key victory on Tuesday as the House Agriculture Committee approved a measure banning mandatory labeling as well as local efforts to regulate genetically engineered crops.The move demonstrates fresh momentum for those seeking to block mandated labeling of foods made with GMO crops, food industry advocates said.