New EU NGTs law endorsed by experts can improve crop nutrient content and boost resilience

21 Feb 2024 --- The European Parliament (EP) has voted to approve an EU new genomic technologies (NGTs) regulation framework that sets them apart from genetically modified organisms (GMOs), which are much more strictly regulated within the bloc. Following the vote in favor, the EP will initiate discussions with member states on finalizing the law.

Nutrition Insight discusses the new legislature with representatives of two Brussels, Belgium-based organizations, Dr. Petra Jorasch, manager of plant breeding innovation advocacy at the EU seed industry association Euroseeds, and Amrit Nanda, executive manager at Plants for the Future ETP (Plant ETP), a multi-stakeholder platform representing the plant sector from fundamental research to crop production and distribution.

“NGTs are one tool in the plant breeder’s toolbox, and in general, breeding is, of course, always about improving plants,” Jorasch tells us. “This includes their nutrient content, as well as their resistance against certain diseases and their yield. All these aspects can be addressed through NGTs.”

Experts explain minor NGT modifications can improve nutritional quality without affecting characteristics.Nanda adds that “NGT plants with improved nutritional quality are already commercialized outside of the EU, including healthier oil soy, GABA (γ-aminobutyric acid)-enriched tomato and healthier leafy greens, among others.”

Nutrient content and quality
Discussing how NGTs can be used by EU farmers to improve the nutrient content and resilience of crops, Nanda asserts that “NGTs can indeed improve nutrition.”  

“They allow the making of small modifications that improve the nutritional quality of existing varieties without affecting characteristics, like yield and disease resistance, that are essential for farmers. This is very difficult to achieve with only current breeding methods.”

Jorasch agrees with this perspective, adding, “In terms of nutritional content, NGTs can, for example, improve the oil composition of oil crops or ensure a better quality for processing and then baking. In cereals, NGTs have been shown to improve the quality of barley.”

“When baked, wheat products can result in the formation of the potentially problematic chemical acrylamide. One project currently being carried out in the UK is attempting to address this. Since scientists know which type of ingredient in wheat is causing this problem, using CRISPR cast, by switching off a gene, they can reduce this substance,” she details.

“This is just one concrete example, but there are many more. The same procedure can be implemented to improve fruits and vegetables. In Japan, they already have NGT-altered GABA tomatoes on the market. The compound GABA is known to lower blood pressure.”

EU food and nutrition security
Euroseeds’ Jorasch welcomes the EU’s decision to embrace NGTs by excluding them from the GMO category, arguing it can boost the availability of locally-grown, high-quality produce.

Enabling the use of NGTs is essential to ensuring the EU’s agricultural competitiveness, experts warn.“NGTs improve breeding by making it more efficient and targeted. This speeds up the breeding process, which means the breeding sector will be able to provide better and improved varieties to farmers. So, these technologies can contribute to the overall food security and sustainability. They can allow plants to resist diseases without pesticides,” she explains. 

Plant ETP’s Nanda agrees with Jorasch’s assertion: “When new pests and diseases emerge in Europe, farmers do not have other means to protect their crops than using plant protection products, and even then, they often still end up with reduced yield and quality. Using NGTs, breeders could develop resistant varieties faster, thereby reducing the amounts of plant protection products used and ensuring food and nutrition security.”

“These methods would enable the EU to leverage a lot of the plant science research that has been undertaken in the last decades to develop a wider range of plant varieties that are, additionally, more resilient to the effects of climate change and require less inputs. Thereby transitioning toward more sustainable agri-food systems, without reducing productivity.”

 “Breeding overall plays a huge role in ensuring food security and the EU’s agricultural competitiveness. Enabling the use of NGTs will ensure that breeding can continue to contribute to this,” Nanda states. 

Also addressing the EU’s agro sector global competitiveness, Jorasch adds, “When we look at the global environment, where many countries already have various enabling regulations for NGTs and where those technologies are already available to farmers, without the ongoing legislation, European farmers would be left behind.” 

“Agriculture is a global business,” she continues. “If EU farmers do not have the same toolbox available as their counterparts in other parts of the world, of course, they would be much less competitive.” 

Controversies
The NGT law is not without its controversy, with 307 members of the EP (MEPs) voting in favor to 263 against and 41 abstaining. 

Just prior to the vote, IFOAM Organics Europe called on MEPs and member states to continue enforcing the strict GMO regulations on NGTs, arguing that agricultural outputs that have undergone such procedures should remain subject to risk assessments and traceability testing. 

“NGT plants are equivalent to conventionally bred plants,” responds Nanda. “They do not pose any new risks. This has been confirmed by the European Food Safety Authority. Therefore, they would not affect public health either way, compared to the status quo.” 

Jorasch continues, “The European Commission’s initial regulatory proposal can be described as a very reasonable, balanced approach. They do not claim that nothing is a GMO or that nothing should be regulated.”

“Their proposal for NGT plants to undergo a pre-assessment, similar to the process implemented during conventional breeding. Whether or not this will require a GMO risk assessment will be decided on a case-by-case basis. This is a very balanced approach and one that does not compromise safety or precautionary principles,” Jorasch concludes. 

By Milana Nikolova