Dive Brief:
- A new GMO potato variety developed by Cellectis Plant Sciences has not faced the same regulatory hurdles as did the controversial variety developed by J.R. Simplot.
- At issue is the approach that scientists used in creating the variety. Simplot's Innate variety was created by using a plant pest to transfer genes. Cellectis used a bacterium to remove a gene.
- Under U.S. law, transferring of genes opens up a complicated regulatory process under the U.S. Department of Agriculture that includes a period of public comments. Gene editing requires no such thing.
Dive Insight:
Simplot has learned the hard way that a public debate about a GMO variety isn't likely to win over customers or consumers, whereas Cellectis is learning that avoiding the USDA portion of the regulatory process has some distinct advantages.
But the issue isn't just about the regulatory process, it's about the question of safety of the food system. As we have noted before, gene editing may be an easier sell than gene modification, but it's still not easy. And the debate over how to regulate gene editing is only a few years old and almost certain to grow more complex soon.