Prodigal ProdiGene

Disclosures that a small pharming company came close to triggering another Starlink episode have prompted U.S. food manufacturers and retailers, some of ag biotech's most steadfast supporters, to call for new government restrictions on testing and growing genetically modified plants.

ProdiGene Inc. (College Station, Texas) acknowledged an incident in Nebraska, in which its violation of permits and disregard of instructions from the U.S. Department of Agriculture led to the co-mingling of crops intended for human consumption with corn that was bioengineered to produce pharmaceutical or industrial proteins. ...