How the EU's Stance on Gene Editing May Evolve

In terms of setting the guidelines for contemporary genetics, modern laws can sometimes seem as antiquated as the Magna Carta. In 2001, the European Union adopted key policies that govern the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in agriculture -- but that was more than a decade before the CRISPR technique, a more efficient, cheaper method of gene editing, rose to prominence. On Jan. 18, the advocate general to the European Court of Justice, Michal Bobek, issued a preliminary opinion regarding the interpretation and classification of new and evolving gene-editing techniques, such as CRISPR, as they relate to the European Union's stringent GMO regulations. The bloc is currently waiting for a court decision on the matter, but the possibility of legislative change has given hope to agricultural biotechnology companies and researchers that their techniques, which can increase crop yields and alter the specific properties of organisms, may soon obtain a...