AgbioInvestor’s free-to-access service AgbioInvestor GM Monitor has identified the following GM trait approvals up to November 2023. Expanded details on these recently approved traits, as well as for approvals dating back as far as 1992, can be found on AgbioInvestor’s GM Monitor website.

Bayer’s genetic event MON 94804, a novel trait that confers reduced overall plant height, has received both cultivation and food/feed import approval in Brazil. The trait was developed by Bayer and possesses the gene GA20ox_SUP, a suppression cassette designed to target endogenous maize gibberellic acid 20 oxidase (GA20ox) genes. This suppression results in the reduction of gibberellic acid levels in the stalk, leading to a reduction of internode length and consequently reduced overall plant height compared to conventional maize.

MON 94804 maize was produced by agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation of maize tissue using T-DNA, containing the desired genetic information, to transfer a segment of T-DNA into host cells. Successful genetic transformation is then screened for, often through the use of marker genes to demonstrate the proper insertion of the DNA transcript. The shortened stature provides MON 94804 maize with agronomic and environmental benefits, including reduced lodging and green snap, season-long crop access using standard ground equipment, and potential for improved environmental sustainability with more precise application of agrochemicals or key nutrients.

The MON 94804 event has so far only been approved in Canada, receiving both cultivation and food/feed earlier this year in June, making Brazil the second country to grant the trait cultivation and food/feed. The trait has also been submitted to the Food Standards Agency of Australia and New Zealand for food use.