USDA APHIS issues RSR responses for pennycress, rice, soybean and cowpea

Date:06-28-2024

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) recently reviewed the following plants modified using genetic engineering to determine whether they posed an increased plant pest risk relative to non-modified comparators:

• Plants modified for altered product quality

• CoverCress, two pennycress 

• Hjelle Advisors, rice 

• Toolgen, soybean 

• Plant modified for increased yield

• Inari, two soybean 

• Plant modified for altered flowering and growth habit 

• Better Seeds, cowpea 

APHIS found these modified plants were unlikely to pose an increased plant pest risk compared to other cultivated plants. As a result, they are not subject to regulation under 7 CFR part 340. From a plant pest risk perspective, these modified plants may be safely grown and bred in the United States. 

View the RSR Table 

View the Plant-Trait Mechanism of Action Table