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Scott Kohne

NAFTA Market Acceptance Manager, Seeds & Traits Unit, BBASF

Expert Bio

Scott Kohne is the NAFTA Market Acceptance Manager for the Seeds & Traits unit of BASF. Responsibilities include stakeholder management, technology acceptance, maintaining and promoting a public policy environment for agricultural products.

Scott was born on a farm in Indiana and obtained a Bachelor of Science degree from Purdue University. He has worked for Bayer since 1999 holding various positions in Regulatory, and Public & Government Affairs. Previous to his work with Bayer, Mr. Kohne worked for the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services where he managed the Feed, Seed and Fertilizer Laboratories and the Florida Petroleum Inspection Laboratory.

Studies, Articles and Answers

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Showing 10 out of 19 results

Question

Q: If Monsanto, Dow, and the other "big chem" companies are so proud of their products and are so certain that they are great for the environment and for us, then why all of the all of resistance to labeling and insulation from lawsuits and criminal proceedi

Answered By Scott Kohne - Aug 18, 2014

A: Biotechnology companies are not the only ones opposed to labeling legislation. Farming organizations, grower groups, family farmers and ranchers, food producers, grocers, consumers, physicians, scientists, civic leaders, U.S. regulatory agencies and others have also come out against recent labeling legislative initiatives. For decades, agricultural biotechnology has helped improve food crops to resist disease, improve pest-management efficiency, improve food nutrition value and increase overall crop yield. Today, 70 to 80 percent of grocery products contain genetically engineered (GE) in [...]

Answered By Scott Kohne - Aug 18, 2014

A: Biotechnology companies are not the only ones opposed to labeling legislation. Farming organizations, grower groups, family farmers and ranchers, food producers, grocers, consumers, physicians, scientists, civic leaders, U.S. regulatory agencies and others have also come out against recent labeling legislative initiatives. For decades, agricultural biotechnology has helped improve food crops to resist disease, improve pest-management efficiency, improve food nutrition value and increase overall crop yield. Today, 70 to 80 percent of grocery products contain genetically engineered (GE) in [...]

GMOs in Groceries Health & Safety Labeling

Question

Q: If Monsanto, Dow, and the other "big chem" companies are so proud of their products and are so certain that they are great for the environment and for us, then why all of the all of resistance to labeling and insulation from lawsuits and criminal proceedi

Answered By Scott Kohne - Aug 18, 2014

A: Biotechnology companies are not the only ones opposed to labeling legislation. Farming organizations, grower groups, family farmers and ranchers, food producers, grocers, consumers, physicians, scientists, civic leaders, U.S. regulatory agencies and others have also come out against recent labeling legislative initiatives. For decades, agricultural biotechnology has helped improve food crops to resist disease, improve pest-management efficiency, improve food nutrition value and increase overall crop yield. Today, 70 to 80 percent of grocery products contain genetically engineered (GE) in [...]

Answered By Scott Kohne - Aug 18, 2014

A: Biotechnology companies are not the only ones opposed to labeling legislation. Farming organizations, grower groups, family farmers and ranchers, food producers, grocers, consumers, physicians, scientists, civic leaders, U.S. regulatory agencies and others have also come out against recent labeling legislative initiatives. For decades, agricultural biotechnology has helped improve food crops to resist disease, improve pest-management efficiency, improve food nutrition value and increase overall crop yield. Today, 70 to 80 percent of grocery products contain genetically engineered (GE) in [...]

GMOs in Groceries Health & Safety Labeling

Question

Q: What are ways to know when a new GMO is approved for commercialization in the US? Goal is to ensure GM product exported to Europe complies with EU GM regulations.

Answered By Scott Kohne - Nov 07, 2014

A: I see two separate points to address in your question. One is relative to compliance, and the second is about identifying a product as ready to commercialize by the product owner. If you are trying to absolutely understand whether a specific GM product is in compliance with the regulations of a specific country (for example, the EU), then the best approach may be to contact the regulatory officials within that country and ask them about the status of that product in accordance with their regulations. However, if you are trying to understand whether a product has been commercialized (achi [...]

Health & Safety How GMOs Are Made

Question

Q: How would a world with no GMOs affect the average person

Answered By Scott Kohne - Apr 30, 2014

A: In trying to imagine a world without genetically modified (GM) plants, I would need to think back to the state of agriculture over 20 years ago and consider the impact of removing the tools and solutions that more than 18 million farmers in 27 countries have become accustomed to using in order to effectively and sustainably manage insects, weeds and diseases that rob yield and damage harvests, ultimately reducing farmers’ incomes and well-being. I imagine that the planet would also be suffering more from further loss of arable farm land as a result of the continued inevitability of climate ch [...]

GMOs Globally Modern Agriculture

Question

Q: What is the advantages of GMO? What is the principle of disease resistance of GMO and economic advantages?

Answered By Scott Kohne - Dec 08, 2014

A: According to the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications (ISAAA), between 1996 and 2012, GM crops contributed to food security, sustainability, the environment and climate change in many ways, including:    Increasing crop production valued at US$116.9 billion Conserving biodiversity by saving 123 million hectares of land Helping to alleviate poverty for 16.5 million small, resource-poor farmers and farm families (equaling approximately 65 million people total) Reducing agriculture’s environmental footprint by reducing CO2 emissions by 26 [...]

Business Practices

Question

Q: Youve said that Monsanto only supports the mandatory labeling of food if it raises a safety or health concern. However, organic food does not differ in nutrition or pose a health risk, yet there are labels indicating when a product is organic. So why does

Answered By Community Manager - Nov 25, 2014

A: You are correct that organic food does not differ in nutrition or pose a health risk. The labeling of organic food is managed by the USDA Agricultural Marketing Program, which does not make any claims that organic food differs in nutrition or poses a health risk. It defines “organic” as a “labeling term that indicated that the food or other agricultural product has been produced through approved methods that integrate cultural, biological and mechanical practices that foster cycling of resources, promote ecological balance and conserve biodiversity.” More information on the organic progra [...]

By jcohen1 - Nov 07, 2014

A: When talking about the voluntary labeling of organic food versus mandatory labeling of GMOs, we’re actually comparing proverbial apples and oranges. Please let me explain the difference, and that may help you understand how we can support these two positions at the same time.   The USDA certified organic seal is an indication that a grower has voluntarily worked to achieve certification under the National Organic Program (NOP), a marketing program that is administered by USDA’s Agriculture Marketing Service (AMS). The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB), a Federal Advi [...]

Answered By Community Manager - Feb 05, 2016

A: Monsanto and other agricultural biotech companies support FDA labeling. Their guidance is that labeling is mandatory to provide nutrition and health information. Voluntary labeling, such as under the National Organic Program, should be accurate and not misleading. Like labeling a product organic, stating that a food product does not contain GMOs is voluntary, and provides no nutritional or health information. The National Organic Program (NOP) was established within USDA-Ag Marketing Service in 2002. Much like the labeling discussion today, the NOP was established based on the need for a singl [...]

Answered By Scott Kohne - Jan 12, 2016

A: The biotechnology industry position, which coincides with the position of both the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), relative to labeling of genetically modified (GM) products, is that GM products that have been approved for commercialization, have been deemed as safe and nutritious as their non-GM plant counterparts and therefore require no additional labeling. If a product were to go through an FDA evaluation process and was found to have a health safety concern, then the U.S. government agency (FDA) would require upon approval and commercializat [...]

Answered By Community Manager - Feb 05, 2016

A: Monsanto and other agricultural biotech companies support FDA labeling. Their guidance is that labeling is mandatory to provide nutrition and health information. Voluntary labeling, such as under the National Organic Program, should be accurate and not misleading. Like labeling a product organic, stating that a food product does not contain GMOs is voluntary, and provides no nutritional or health information. The National Organic Program (NOP) was established within USDA-Ag Marketing Service in 2002. Much like the labeling discussion today, the NOP was established based on the need for a singl [...]

Answered By Scott Kohne - Jan 12, 2016

A: The biotechnology industry position, which coincides with the position of both the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), relative to labeling of genetically modified (GM) products, is that GM products that have been approved for commercialization, have been deemed as safe and nutritious as their non-GM plant counterparts and therefore require no additional labeling. If a product were to go through an FDA evaluation process and was found to have a health safety concern, then the U.S. government agency (FDA) would require upon approval and commercializat [...]

Health & Safety Labeling

Question

Q: Youve said that Monsanto only supports the mandatory labeling of food if it raises a safety or health concern. However, organic food does not differ in nutrition or pose a health risk, yet there are labels indicating when a product is organic. So why does

Answered By Community Manager - Nov 25, 2014

A: You are correct that organic food does not differ in nutrition or pose a health risk. The labeling of organic food is managed by the USDA Agricultural Marketing Program, which does not make any claims that organic food differs in nutrition or poses a health risk. It defines “organic” as a “labeling term that indicated that the food or other agricultural product has been produced through approved methods that integrate cultural, biological and mechanical practices that foster cycling of resources, promote ecological balance and conserve biodiversity.” More information on the organic progra [...]

By jcohen1 - Nov 07, 2014

A: When talking about the voluntary labeling of organic food versus mandatory labeling of GMOs, we’re actually comparing proverbial apples and oranges. Please let me explain the difference, and that may help you understand how we can support these two positions at the same time.   The USDA certified organic seal is an indication that a grower has voluntarily worked to achieve certification under the National Organic Program (NOP), a marketing program that is administered by USDA’s Agriculture Marketing Service (AMS). The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB), a Federal Advi [...]

Answered By Community Manager - Feb 05, 2016

A: Monsanto and other agricultural biotech companies support FDA labeling. Their guidance is that labeling is mandatory to provide nutrition and health information. Voluntary labeling, such as under the National Organic Program, should be accurate and not misleading. Like labeling a product organic, stating that a food product does not contain GMOs is voluntary, and provides no nutritional or health information. The National Organic Program (NOP) was established within USDA-Ag Marketing Service in 2002. Much like the labeling discussion today, the NOP was established based on the need for a singl [...]

Answered By Scott Kohne - Jan 12, 2016

A: The biotechnology industry position, which coincides with the position of both the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), relative to labeling of genetically modified (GM) products, is that GM products that have been approved for commercialization, have been deemed as safe and nutritious as their non-GM plant counterparts and therefore require no additional labeling. If a product were to go through an FDA evaluation process and was found to have a health safety concern, then the U.S. government agency (FDA) would require upon approval and commercializat [...]

Answered By Community Manager - Feb 05, 2016

A: Monsanto and other agricultural biotech companies support FDA labeling. Their guidance is that labeling is mandatory to provide nutrition and health information. Voluntary labeling, such as under the National Organic Program, should be accurate and not misleading. Like labeling a product organic, stating that a food product does not contain GMOs is voluntary, and provides no nutritional or health information. The National Organic Program (NOP) was established within USDA-Ag Marketing Service in 2002. Much like the labeling discussion today, the NOP was established based on the need for a singl [...]

Answered By Scott Kohne - Jan 12, 2016

A: The biotechnology industry position, which coincides with the position of both the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), relative to labeling of genetically modified (GM) products, is that GM products that have been approved for commercialization, have been deemed as safe and nutritious as their non-GM plant counterparts and therefore require no additional labeling. If a product were to go through an FDA evaluation process and was found to have a health safety concern, then the U.S. government agency (FDA) would require upon approval and commercializat [...]

Health & Safety Labeling

Question

Q: are genetically modified organisms safe for human consumption?

Answered By Scott Kohne - Mar 11, 2015

A: An overwhelming number of worldwide experts, including World Health Organization (WHO), American Dietetic Association and European Commission, agree that GMOs are safe for human consumption. In advance of a GMO product being commercialized, the innovation provider voluntarily submits to the U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) a dossier of compiled studies to be evaluated to determine the safety of the product as a food or food ingredient for consumers in the U.S. marketplace.   The FDA has well-established scientific procedures to evaluate the safety of GMOs with an expectation o [...]

Health & Safety

Question

Q: Could you tell me about GMOs effect on human beings overall health and longevity?

Answered By Scott Kohne - Apr 10, 2015

A: Bioengineered foods have been consumed for nearly 20 years with no overt consequences on human health reported and/or substantiated in peer-reviewed literature. Additionally, a large number of worldwide experts, including the World Health Organization, American Dietetic Association and European Commission, agree that GMOs are safe for human consumption.   Please read my response to a similar question regarding the impact of GMOs on human health here. For more insight on longevity, please read a response from Dr. Denneal Jamison-McClung, associate director for the UC Davis Biotechnology [...]


Question

Q: Whats with the perception that GMO foods are unhealthy?

Answered By Scott Kohne - Apr 17, 2015

A: There are many differing viewpoints regarding whether GMO foods are healthy, and in our effort of total transparency, the agricultural biotechnology industry is committed to providing open, honest answers to any questions consumers have about health and safety concerns around GMOs. We look to science-based resources with a high level of integrity around this subject matter, such as the American Medical Association (AMA), to provide insight in answering questions like yours.   In a 2012 report on the labeling of bioengineered foods, AMA found that “Bioengineered foods have been co [...]

GMO Basics Health & Safety