Viewpoint: Why are there no approved bioengineered insect-protected (Bt) apples? Bill Pilacinski | July 2, 2026

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/2026/07/02/viewpoint-why-are-there-no-approved-bioengineered-insect-protected-bt-apples/ 642 separate Bioengineered (aka, GM/GMO, recombinant DNA) events, of 42 traits, in 32 different crops or plants have received regulatory approval in one or more countries, according to the ISAAA GM approval database (https://www.isaaa.org). 225 of these events have also been approved in the US, most in the important agricultural crops of maize, soy, cotton, canola and potato. However, an Excel file from USDA Biotechnology Regulatory Services (BRS) of requests for field trial permits of bioengineered events, from April 1985 thru February 2023, has 54,905 entries. Although many of the requests were repeats or were for gene components, it is striking that, since first commercialized in 1996 (30 years ago), with unprecedented acceptance by growers, so few events and traits have been commercialized in the US.