EU Regulations Impede Market Introduction of GM Forest Trees

René Custers; Detlef Bartsch; Matthias Fladung; Ove Nilsson; Gilles Pilate; Jeremy Sweet; Wout Boerjan

doi:10.1016/j.tplants.2016.01.015

EU Regulations Impede Market Introduction of GM Forest Trees

Trends Plant Sci. 2016 Apr;21(4):283-285. doi: 10.1016/j.tplants.2016.01.015. Epub 2016 Feb 17.

Authors

René Custers¹, Detlef Bartsch², Matthias Fladung³, Ove Nilsson⁴, Gilles Pilate⁵, Jeremy Sweet⁶, Wout Boerjan⁷

Affiliations

¹ VIB, 9052 Gent, Belgium. Electronic address: rene.custers@vib.be.
² RWTH, Institute of Environmental Biology, D-52074 Aachen, Germany.
³ Thünen Institute of Forest Genetics (TI-FG), D-22927 Grosshansdorf, Germany.
⁴ Umeå Plant Science Centre, Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, SE-901 83 Umeå, Sweden.
⁵ Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), UR0588, Amélioration, Génétique et Physiologie Forestières, F45075 Orléans, France.
⁶ Environmental Consultant, Sweet Environmental Consultants, Cambridge CB24 5JA, UK.
⁷ VIB Department of Plant Systems Biology, 9052 Gent, Belgium; UGent Department of Plant Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, 9052 Gent, Belgium. Electronic address: wout.boerjan@psb.vib-ugent.be.

PMID: 26897457
DOI: 10.1016/j.tplants.2016.01.015

Abstract

Biotechnology can greatly improve the efficiency of forest tree breeding for the production of biomass, energy, and materials. However, EU regulations impede the market introduction of genetically modified (GM) trees so their socioeconomic and environmental benefits are not realized. European policy makers should concentrate on a science-based regulatory process.

MeSH terms

Biomass
Biotechnology / legislation & jurisprudence*
Breeding
European Union*
Forests
Government Regulation
Plants, Genetically Modified*
Trees / genetics*