Australia’s gene technology, Sue Meek, has confirmed she is issuing a licence for the commercial release of Monsanto Australia’s Roundup Ready canola.
The canola has been engineered to tolerate a herbicide that controls weeds. It is the second genetically modified food crop to be approved in Australia. Five months ago the government issued a licence for the InVigor hybrid canola to Bayer CropScience of Germany.
Despite these licences, it could be years before the crop is planted as farmers will still have to convince state authorities to back GM crops.
Canola joins biotech cotton and carnations as the only other transgenic crops approved in Australia, which is now the world’s second-largest exporter of canola after Canada, Reuters commented.

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