Morning, Tuesday, 29th April 2025
Online
This conference will examine next steps for gene-edited food development, production and regulation in England.
The conference will be an opportunity for stakeholders and policymakers to examine next steps for policy to support the delivery of gene-edited food production, with secondary legislation being put in place to secure the implementation of the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act 2023.
We expect the discussion to bring out latest thinking on opportunities for the sector in the developing policy landscape, looking at the role of new technologies in strengthening domestic food security, and helping prepare the agricultural sector for future challenges and demands. It comes with Defra’s recently published UK Food Security report finding weakened food production stability and supply chain resilience.
Strategic priorities for R&D will be discussed, alongside avoiding ecosystem harm to the food system as it adapts to climate change.
The agenda looks at priorities for regulation, with the FSA consulting on a framework for gene-edited food production. Areas for discussion include funding and investment priorities, strategies for tackling barriers to market development, implications of cross-border regulatory divergence, and issues for intellectual property rights.
Those attending will also consider options and implications for industry around pre-authorisation processes for products, and managing risk, particularly with new legislation not requiring food labels to identify gene-edited products.
Further sessions will consider public engagement on gene-edited products, assessing latest trends in consumer preferences and how best to address concerns around food safety and potential development of new toxins, with discussion on understanding, awareness, and marketing.
We are pleased to be able to include keynote sessions with: Professor Gideon Henderson, Chief Scientific Adviser and Director General, Science and Analysis, Defra; and Professor Mario Caccamo, CEO and Director, Niab.
All delegates will be able to contribute to the output of the conference, which will be shared with parliamentary, ministerial, departmental and regulatory offices, and more widely. This includes the full proceedings and additional articles submitted by delegates. As well as key stakeholders, those due to attend include officials from Defra; DBT; FSA; FSS; CCC; the Welsh Government; and The Scottish Government.
