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The first GMO Case in Front of the US Supreme Court: To Lift or Not to Lift the Alfalfa Planting Ban?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Alberto Alemanno
Alberto Alemanno*
Affiliation:
HEC Paris
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Extract

Alfalfa is one of the most important legumes used in agriculture and the fourth most cultivated plant behind corn, soybeans and wheat in the US. It has been grown in almost all federal states, occupies 9 million hectares and is primarily used in feed for dairy cows and beef cattle. US consumers also eat GM alfalfa as sprouts in salads and other foods. Roundup Ready alfalfa was developed by the agrobiotechnology firms Monsanto and Forage Genetics. It was originally approved in June 2005 for commercial sale by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). Alfalfa is designed to tolerate the leading active substance in Monsanto’s trademark Roundup herbicide, glyphosate. It is also the first genetically modified perennial crop to be commercialized. As a result, its cultivation poses special environmental, agricultural and economic risks.

Type
Reports
Information
European Journal of Risk Regulation , Volume 1 , Issue 2 , June 2010 , pp. 152 - 153
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2010

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References

1 Alfalfa is a flowering plant which belongs to the pea family Fabaceae cultivated as an important forage crop. It is also widely known as lucerne and as lucerne grass in south Asia. It resembles clover with clusters of small purple flowers.

2 The Plant Protection Act of 2000 (PPA) directs the Secretary of Agriculture (in this case, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)) to promulgate regulations to prevent the “introduction of plant pests into the United States or the dissemination of plant pests within the United States.” Pursuant to that authority, APHIS has issued regulations governing the introduction of genetically modified organisms that are believed to be plant pests. If an organism is identified as such, a company or individual may petition APHIS for a determination that the organism does not present a plant pest risk and is thus not subject to the regulations.

3 WORC, Dakota Resource Council, Center for Food Safety and others.

4 Legal proceedings also have taken place meanwhile on the subject of GM sugar beets, which have been approved in the USA since 2005 and which were planted on 450,000 hectares in 2009.