Research assignments that are being withdrawn, companies that are deciding to relocate their R&D departments outside Europe — it is gradually becoming clear that the decision by the European Court of Justice to treat CRISPR-Cas as a form of genetic modification is having far-reaching consequences. Including for Wageningen University & Research (WUR).
In an indepth article, Albert Sikkema at WUR takes a closer look at this developing issue. Sikkema writes that crops that were improved using CRISPR-Cas have to undergo a time-consuming and expensive approval procedure before they can be grown or traded. In countries such as the US and Japan, CRISPR-Cas is not covered by that GMO procedure so plant breeders can now develop and market new varieties much faster there. The court’s decision will put the Dutch plant breeding sector at a disadvantage, concludes Ernst van den Ende, director of the Plant Sciences Group.
Read the full article on the WUR website: Innovation in a bind – European ruling on CRISPR-Cas has major consequences
