Gene-edited tomatoes could soon be sold in England

Image source, BBC News

Tomatoes that boost the body's vitamin D could be among the first gene-edited crops allowed for sale in England.

The plants were created by turning off a molecule in their genetic code.

A bill will be introduced on Wednesday that will allow commercial growing of genes-edited crops in England.

The technique is not used in the UK because of EU rules, but because of the UK's own rules.

One in six people in the UK are not getting enough of the sun's rays to get enough of the sun's rays to get enough of the sun's rays to get enough of the sun's rays to get enough of the sun's rays to get enough of the

The development could be very beneficial according to the leader of the research at the John Innes Centre.

Half an hour in the sun every day is enough for humans to get enough vitamins D and E. The tomatoes could be a good source of vitamins D and E.

The fruit could be one of the first gene-edited crops allowed on supermarket shelves in England.

Gene editing is new. A small section of the plant's DNA is cut out to switch genes on and off. Sometimes genes are put in from a completely different species.

Both methods have been banned in Europe for 25 years.

In other countries, both methods are used to produce food. 25 years ago, the EU set stringent regulations on GM crops because of safety concerns. The same regulations apply to genes-edited crops.

European Union regulations on both technologies are followed by the UK.

A scientific safety assessment for any new GM or GE crop can take five years. Plant breeders don't invest in technology in Europe because they think it's too expensive. Any new variety that passes the EU's safety tests must be approved by a majority at the European Parliament.

Political opposition is too strong for the approval of new GM or GE varieties. The plant industry says that the regulations prevented the production of GM foods in Europe.

The UK government has decided that gene editing is safe to use and is to introduce a bill on Wednesday to allow its commercial development in England. The regulations on GM crops will not be loosened.

George Eustice, the Environment Secretary, said that the change in the law was necessary to combat the impact of climate change.

As we try and reduce the use of chemical pesticides, we need to breed in the natural resistance of plants to diseases and this precision breeding technology gives you the ability to do that.

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The development has been welcomed by a plant-breeding firm which produces wheat and barley.

It takes us 12 years to produce the new varieties we see in England. We can respond to changing farmers much faster with gene-editing.

Traditional cross-breeding techniques have been used by the KWS to develop new wheat and barley varieties for 150 years. Mr Moore says that the firm needs to use gene-editing to produce new varieties.

Climate change, the need to reduce nitrogenfertilizer, use less pesticides, and the faster we get the genetic changes we need, the faster we are able to adapt to all of that changing world around us.

The director of the campaign group, GM Freeze, says that the government is being too hasty in lifting restrictions on the use of gene-edited crops.

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Mistakes happen. Other changes can be made. Lego is not like genetics. There is an awful lot that could go wrong because it is a new set of techniques.

The process does involve putting genetic material in, in order to take it out, and there is a deliberate oversimplification in the description of the process in order to make people feel comfortable about it.

The relaxation of regulations that apply to England only will not happen in other parts of the UK, which will make their own decisions about the use of technology.

The food chain does not only operate in England. It operates in the UK. Who is going to make sure that the food in Scotland and Wales is free of genes?

Customers want informed choice and can only get it if the food is traced.

A number of scientific assessments have judged gene-editing technology to be safe and new crop varieties are analysed to make sure there is no new DNA in them before they are approved for use, according to the response from KWS.

He thinks English-grown GE foods will not find their way to other parts of the UK.

The agricultural supply chains are very competent in delivering brand requirements such asGluten free and organic foods to very high standards.

The Scottish Government is against GM crops. They want to protect the purity of Scotland's food and drinks sector. NFU Scotland says that it puts Scottish farmers at a competitive disadvantage.

A Welsh Government spokesman said there were no plans to revise the existing GMO Deliberate Release Regulations in Wales.

When GM crop was banned in Northern Ireland at the same time as in Scotland and Wales in 2015, it was said that it would hold for the foreseeable future.