The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said it deregulated a genetically engineered soybean variety created by BASF Corporation, in a March 14 news release.
The variety is named GMB 151, and it was created to fight against soybean cyst nematode, a microscopic parasitic worm, and for herbicide resistance. APHIS conducted a plant pest risk assessment and an environmental assessment before opening the topic to a 30-day public comment period.
"APHIS considered all public comments and conducted a thorough review of the potential environmental impacts in its final EA pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act, reaching a finding of no significant impact," the news release said.
As part of the last plant pest risk assessment, APHIS concluded the GMB 151 soybean variety most likely will not hurt agricultural crops or other plants in the U.S.
It is also believed there is no environmental impact of any significance. The deregulation went into effect March 9. The final determination can be seen on the News page of the APHIS Biotechnology Regulatory Services website.
