The Canadian experience with novel herbicide tolerant canola

Abstract

Canada grows about 11.3 million acres of canola per year, primarily in western regions, making it the largest single producer country. Of that acreage, almost 95% is sown to herbicide tolerant lines. In Canada, regulatory oversight is triggered by the novelty of the product rather than the process by which it was created. Thus a herbicide tolerant crop could be considered as a plant with a novel trait (PNT) and trigger regulation regardless of the whether it was produced using the methods of modern biotechnology or more traditional means such as mutation breeding. PNTs intended for commercial release are subject to an assessment for safety as food, as livestock feed and for release in the environment. This focuses on the issues considered during the risk assessment for environmental release of herbicide tolerant canola, and the subsequent post release risk management. The changes in land management in western Canada as a consequence of the adoption of herbicide tolerant canola and the implications for sustainable agriculture are also considered.