Genetically modified alfalfa (Medicago sativa) is a genetically modified crop. Alfalfa is a perennial flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae primarily used to feed livestock. It is the 5th most widely grown GM crop in global acreage. Most GM alfalfa grown is resistant to herbicides, specifically glyphosate-based herbicides, and has been sold as 'Roundup Ready'. As of 2020, GM alfalfa was grown in two countries - the United States and Canada. 20% of US-grown alfalfa was GMO by 2020 (vs greater than 90% for the other major GMO Crops - corn, soy, cotton, canola and sugar beets). Since 2016, a smaller percentage has been modified to contain less lignin, which can increase yield by extending the optimal harvest window.
In the United States, GM alfalfa was first approved for commercial planting from 2005 - 2007. Legal challenges from environmental groups and organic growers kept GM alfalfa seed off the market from 2007 - 2011. These legal challenges escalated to the 2010 Supreme Court case Monsanto Co. v. Geertson Seed Farms. The Supreme Court sided with Monsanto, allowing GM alfalfa to be farmed and sold, and US sales of GM alfalfa seed resumed in 2011. Canadian sales began in 2014.
History
In the early 1990s researchers inserted genes into alfalfa using Agrobacterium tumefaciens. In 1999, Monsanto licensed the Roundup Ready gene to Forage Genetics, a subsidiary of Land O'Lakes agricultural cooperative.
In 2014, China refused shipments of American alfalfa after detecting traces of genetically modified material, and US alfalfa exporters suffered significant losses as a result.
From 2005-2016, all commercially grown GM alfalfa was the pesticide resistant 'roundup ready' type. In 2016, HarvXtra GM alfalfa was first planted commercially. This alfalfa has been modified to contain less lignin, giving the crop higher digestibility, and a longer time window for optimal cutting.
Growing history GM Alfalfa was first permitted in the United States in 2005. More than 300,000 acres were planted in the US by 2007.Steve Orloff and Dan Putnam Roundup Ready Alfalfa—What Have We Learned to Date? Proceedings, 2011 Western Alfalfa & Forage Conference, Las Vegas, NV, 11–13 December 2011
Planting was halted between March 2007 and 2011 due to legal challenges. Planting resumed in 2011, and by 2018, US farmers had planted 1,260,000 hectares of GM alfalfa, mostly glyphosate-resistant Roundup Ready (1,140,000 hectares Roundup Ready and 120,000 hectares HarvXtra).GM Alfalfa became available in Eastern Canada in 2014. By 2019, Canada had over 10,000 acres planted with 'HarvXtra' GM alfalfa, with the majority in Ontario. As of 2019, it was not available in Western Canada, in part due to concerns over its impact on the export seed market which relies on non-GM alfalfa seed.
Legal issues in the US In 2005, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) granted Roundup Ready GM Alfalfa (RRA) nonregulated statusUSDA/APHIS Environmental Assessment United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Biotechnology Regulatory Services, October 2004. Retrieved 13 November 2011 Monsanto Co. and Forage Genetics International; Availability Determination of Nonregulated Status for Alfalfa Genetically Engineered for Tolerance to the Herbicide Glyphosate Federal Register, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, 27 June 2005. Retrieved 12 November 2011Code of Federal Regulations, Title 7: Agriculture Part 340—Introduction of Organisms and Products Altered or Produced Through Genetic Engineering Which Are Plant Pests or Which There Is Reason to Believe Are Plant Pests Monsanto had to seek deregulation to conduct field trials of RRA, because the RRA contains a promoter sequence derived from the plant pathogen figwort mosaic virus. The USDA granted the application for deregulation, stating that the RRA with its modifications: "(1) Exhibit no plant pathogenic properties; (2) are no more likely to become weedy than the nontransgenic parental line or other cultivated alfalfa; (3) are unlikely to increase the weediness potential of any other cultivated or wild species with which it can interbreed; (4) will not cause damage to raw or processed agricultural commodities; (5) will not harm threatened or endangered species or organisms that are beneficial to agriculture; and (6) should not reduce the ability to control pests and weeds in alfalfa or other crops."
The granting of deregulation was opposed by many groups, including growers of non-GM alfalfa who were concerned about gene flow into their crops. In 2006, the Center for Food Safety, a US non-governmental organization that is a critic of biotech crops, and others, challenged this deregulation in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.Monsanto et al v Geertson Seed Farms et al , Supreme Court of the United States, Decision no 09-475, 21 June 2010. Retrieved 13 November 2011 Organic growers were concerned that GM alfalfa could cross-pollinate with their organic alfalfa, making their crops unsalable in countries that ban GM imports.Supreme Court on Modified Foods: Who Won?, by Barry Estabrook, 'The Atlantic'. 22 June 2010. Retrieved 22 June 2010. The District Court ruled that the USDA's environmental assessment did not address two issues concerning RRA's effect on the environment,These two issues were: 1) evaluation of the risk that complete deregulation of RRA would lead to cross-pollination or the transmission of the gene conferring glyphosate tolerance from RRA to conventional alfalfa 2) evaluation of the risk that growing RRA might lead to the development of Roundup-resistant weeds. and in 2007, required the USDA to complete a much more extensive environmental impact statement (EIS). Until the EIS was completed, they banned further planting of RRA but allowed land already planted to continue.Memorandum and Order Re: Permanent Injunction United States District Court for Northern California, Case No C 06-01075 CR, 3 May 2007. Retrieved 13 November 2011
In June 2009, a divided three-judge panel on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the District Court's decision. Monsanto and others appealed to the US Supreme Court.Supreme Court Lifts Ban on Planting GM Alfalfa by Jennifer Koons, NYT, 21 June 2010 (Retrieved 21 June 2010)
On 21 June 2010, in Monsanto Co. v. Geertson Seed Farms, the Supreme Court overturned the District Court decision to ban planting RRA nationwide as there was no evidence of irreparable injury.Monsanto Company v. Geertson Seed Farms at ScotusWiki – Briefs and Documents, etc. They ruled that the USDA could partially deregulate RRA before an EIS was completed. The Supreme Court did not consider the District Court's ruling disallowing RRA's deregulation and consequently RRA was still a regulated crop waiting for USDA's completion of an EIS. In December 2010, the USDA published a 2,300-page EIS, which concluded that RRA would not affect the environment.Glyphosate-Tolerant Alfalfa Events J101 and J163: Request for Nonregulated Status Final Environmental Impact Statement , United States Department of Agriculture, December 2010. Retrieved 13 November 2011
In January 2011, the USDA had approved unrestricted planting of genetically modified alfalfa and planting resumed.USDA - Roundup Ready® Alfalfa Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) , United States Department of Agriculture, December 2010. Retrieved 13 November 2011Gilla, Carey and Doering, Christopher UPDATE 3-U.S. farmers get approval to plant GMO alfalfa Reuters US Edition, 27 January 2011. Retrieved 28 April 2011 Secretary Vilsack commented, "After conducting a thorough and transparent examination of alfalfa ... APHIS [Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service] has determined that Roundup Ready alfalfa is as safe as traditionally bred alfalfa."USDA News Release No. 0035.11, 27 January 2011. USDA Announces Decision to Fully Deregulate Roundup Ready Alfalfa
In March 2011, the non-profit Center for Food Safety appealed the deregulation decision.Maria Rodale: We Stand in Opposition to GE Alfalfa. Huffingtonpost.com. Retrieved on 8 February 2011.The District Court for Northern California rejected this appeal in 2012.
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