Posted January 7, 2014
USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
(APHIS) recently announced that it will reopen the comment period for the
genetically engineered (GE) Arctic Apple, according to an article by Agri-Pulse
available here. The Federal Register notice is available here.
The comment period for the plant pest risk assessment
and draft environmental assessment of the GE apple has been reopened through
January 30.
APHIS explained the reason for reopening the comment
period was “due to numerous requests for additional time to prepare and submit
comments.” The letter to stakeholders is
available here.
The GE apple varieties (Arctic Golden and Arctic
Granny) resist browning and were developed by Okanagan Specialty Fruits Inc.
(OSF), a Canadian Company. APHIS
recommended the two varieties to be granted non-regulated status. In its environmental assessment, APHIS stated
that the apples “have the potential to improve fruit processing capabilities
for maintaining the quality and shelf life of apples.”
The U.S. Apple Association stated that it doubted “the
consumer demand was there for those (non-browning) attributes” and that the
apple’s success “will become a matter of consumer choice.”
For more information on biotechnology, please visit the
National Agricultural Law Center’s website here.
