The USDA Just Cleared a Defective GMO Tree for Release into the Wild with Anne Petermann

Send us Fan Mail A genetically engineered (GE) chestnut modified with a wheat gene is being framed as a conservation breakthrough, but the reality is far messier and far more permanent. After the USDA deregulated the GE American chestnut for release, we asked the question regulators keep sidestepping: what does “safety” even mean when a tree can live for centuries, spread pollen for miles, and reproduce in ecosystems we cannot control? We speak with Anne Petermann of Global Justice Ecology P...