**Abstract**

Plant breeding was provided access to wider genetic variation through genetic modification (GM) of crops in the 1980s. This involved transfer of DNA between species, and introduction of new traits into domestic crops. Concerns were raised for the outcomes in food health and in the environment with GM crops, with the spectre of 'Frankenstien' foods and fear of the unknown. This led to widespread adoption of GM regulations based on the 'Precautionary principle' of safeguarding the risks to health and to the environment, even when scientific evidence was lacking to support these concerns. The Green lobby required GM foods to be safe for consumption, with no ill-effects over the long term and for many generations into the future. GM foods have proven safe for over two decades, and with benefits to crop productivity, pest and disease resistances, improved nutrition and tolerances of extreme climatic stresses. GM includes the new biotechnology of Genome Editing (GE), with targeted and precise changes to gene sites, and inter-specific transfer of genes from poorly accessible Crop Wild Relatives (CRW), for adaptation of crops to climate change. Food and fibre crops need to be exempt from GM regulations.

**Keywords:** Regulation, genetic modification, genome editing, crops, climate change, crop wild relatives

## **1. Introduction**

As outlined by Redden [1], Australia's cultivation of GM crops in 2015 comprised herbicide-tolerant canola 444,000 ha, stacked GM (herbicide-tolerant plus pest resistant) cotton 253,000 ha, and herbicide tolerant only cotton 20,000 ha [2, 3].

With GM cotton pesticides have been substantially reduced, benefiting human safety, adjacent livestock enterprises and the environment, plus improving yields [4–6]. Herbicide resistant canola both controlled weeds and raised yields [5, 7]. These GM crops can be grown with minimum tillage, thereby conserving soil moisture for crop maturation in the low rainfall Southern cropping zone where every mm saved is 20 kg/ha or more grain [8]! Herbicide weed control allows earlier sowing to better match crop growth with seasonal winter rainfall.

South Australia (SA) was the last mainland state to have a moratoria on GM crops [1]), scheduled to 2025 but now lifted as recommended by Anderson [9]. The moratoria cost the canola industry \$33 million over 2004–2018. Australian GM canola with a 10% yield benefit, suffered no adverse international market advantage compared with non-GM canola except for Japan, which paid an estimated price premium of \$32/tonne (about 7%) for GM free (zero adventitious contamination) canola from Kangaroo Island (KI) in SA [9]. This entailed segregation of non-GM from GM canola in the delivery-chain with identity protocols and codes of practice. The moratoria was kept for KI crops, and the market chain for KI produce will remain segregated.

In Tasmania GM crops have been banned since 2001 [10]. This is supported by the horticulture and honey industries maintain Tasmania's image for pure GM free produce.
