USDA APHIS Releases Regulatory Status Review of Seven Modified Plants

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has released their review of seven plants modified using genetic engineering to determine whether they posed an increased plant pest risk relative to non-modified comparators.

APHIS found that these modified plants were unlikely to pose an increased plant pest risk compared to other cultivated plants and were not subject to regulation under 7 CFR part 340 and may be safely grown and bred in the United States.

The six modified plants are the following:

• Plants modified for altered product quality
• two pennycress by CoverCress
• rice by Hjelle Advisors
• soybean by Toolgen
• Plant modified for increased yield
• two soybean from Inari 
• Plant modified for altered flowering and growth habit 
• cowpea by Better Seeds

For more details, read the media release on the APHIS website.