Monsanto to release new GM canola crop in Australia

Monsanto hopes to release a new genetically modified canola crop into the Australian market next year.

The company has applied to the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator for a licence to commercially sell its second generation Roundup-ready crop.

Monsanto's Tony May said the new crop will offer a longer period to apply herbicides during the plant's growth phase.

"The current technology is Roundup-ready canola and it allows farmers to apply Roundup-ready herbicide over the top of canola but only early in the growing season," he said.

"What TruFlex is going to enable farmers to do is apply a glyphosate or Roundup-ready herbicide for a much longer period of time into the season."

The Office of the Gene Technology Regulator will complete a risk assessment and risk management plan for TruFlex.

The OGTR expects to call for public comment into the crop in July.

The uptake of GM crops, like Roundup-ready canola, has been more popular in Western Australia than Victoria and New South Wales.

South Australia has a moratorium on GM crops until 2019.

Mr May said he expects the uptake of GM crops will continue to increase.

"Farmers want to be able to see that they're getting the best yields they can because hybrids are more expensive to buy than some of the open pollinated systems," he said.

"The flip side to that is they have to manage weeds in the rotation of their cropping system and Roundup gives farmers the opportunity to control weeds that they might not have been able to control otherwise."