Biotech Updates

Switzerland Funds Biotech Research

June 1, 2007

The Swiss National Science Foundation will fund a four-year SFr12 million (US$9.8 million) program to do work on genetically modified (GM) plants. A total of 27 projects will be implemented to look into the uses and risks of releasing GM plants in the country. In addition to biological experiments, research will also involve economic, legal and ethical aspects.

Eights projects will look into plant resistance and various environmental risks by carrying out three proposed field experiments with transgenic wheat. These requests to carry out field experiments are pending.

In November 2005, Swiss voters accepted a proposal for a five-year blanket ban on GM organisms in Swiss agriculture. This resulted in some of the toughest legislation on GM organisms in Europe. Eventually, the government allowed the Science Foundation to proceed with research that would provide science-based information regarding the release of GM plants in Switzerland.

Online information is available at http://www.swissinfo.org/eng/front/detail/GM_projects_take_seed.html?siteSect=105&sid=7875352&
cKey=1180535884000