State Policy Priorities for Agricultural Biotechnology

• Plant-based production of pharmaceutical and industrial compounds is an efficient and scalable method to produce proteins, allowing more capital to be invested in research and development, giving consumers access to these products faster.
• The federal government has recognized the potential of this production method and is actively engaged to oversee the safe development of such therapies. Several agencies within USDA and FDA regulate and monitor this technology, including USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) under the Biotechnology Regulatory Services (BRS), the FDA Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research (CBER), FDA Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER), FDA Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) and FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM).

BIO supports insurance coverage for products of agricultural biotechnology. To date, there has not been a single claim paid by an insurer for any injury, damage, expense, cost, loss or other legal obligation resulting from any defect or harm caused by use of an agricultural biotechnology product.

• Excluding biotechnology products from insurance could stifle innovation and curtail the ability of growers to employ more efficient, cost effective technologies as well as negatively impact academic research.
• A denial of coverage runs counter to the proven track record of safety afforded by the nearly two decade's worth of research, regulatory oversight, growing and consuming agricultural biotechnology products.

BIO supports the USDA National Organic Standards that focus on production practices.

• The USDA standards make allowances for trace amounts of non-organic material without compromising the organic certification.
• The issue of cross-pollination is not a new or different issue for growers, and occurs with biotech and traditional plant varieties. Growers of specialty crops have developed "identity-preservation" processes to manage cross-pollination. Such growers assume responsibility of meeting specified criteria and are rewarded with a premium price.

BIO supports the use of biotechnology to improve animal health, increase the productivity of our animals, and provide a new avenue for therapy production and disease treatment.

• Biotechnology is a more efficient, precise, controllable and predictable variation on the age-old practice of selective breeding which has been widely practiced by humans to develop domesticated livestock and companion animals.
• Scientists are now taking the next step and developing transgenic animals — animals with genes inserted from another organism — to provide solutions for disease treatment, organ transplant shortage and food production. For growers and consumers, transgenic animals offer the hope of increased supplies of meat, milk and eggs that are more nutritious and allow growers to raise animals with less feed and have less impact on the environment.