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Scotland is banning GMO crops in a bid to protect its "clean and green brand," angering farmers and scientists who say the ban panders to unwarranted consumer concerns and has no basis in science. "Cultivation of GM crops would harm our environment and our reputation," counters Scottish Green lawmaker Alison Johnstone. The Independent (London) (tiered subscription model) (8/9) 

Costa Rica's new president has announced a plan to ban fossil fuels and become the first fully decarbonised country in the world.

Supermarkets in France have been banned from throwing away or spoiling unsold food by law. The stores are now required to donate unwanted food to charities and food banks.

The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil has released its 2016 RSPO Impact Report, which highlights the following accomplishments for 2016: * Increased membership by 29% over the previous year. * Achieved 83 million hectares (10,900 square miles) of certified palm oil producing lands across 14 nations. * 40 RSPO growers have phased out the toxic herbicide paraquat, with another 33 firms saying they are on track to ban the use of this chemical. * Doubled the number of certified independent smallholders. * Closed two-thirds of the labor grievances filed since 2009.

there's another major consumer of water in California and the United States - one that doesn't receive the same attention as lush lawns or the agricultural industry: power plants. In 2005, power plants across the country withdrew as much water as farms did, according to a 2011 report, Freshwater Use by U.S. Power Plants: Electricity's Thirst for a Precious Resource, from the Union of Concerned Scientists and a team of independent water experts.

Ecolab announced that its manufacturing plant in Taicang, China became the first site in the world to be independently certified under the Alliance for Water Stewardship's (AWS) global standard for water stewardship. The AWS Standard was developed to promote sustainable freshwater use and to evaluate water stewardship practices.

Signatories of the Indonesia Palm Oil Pledge (IPOP) will disband as a result of "recent ground-breaking policy developments" in Indonesia that have fulfilled the purpose of the IPOP consortium. The signatory companies - including Cargill, Golden Agri Resources, and Wilmar International - plan to continue their sustainability commitments independently.

Independent charity Sustainable Shipping Initiative launched its Roadmap to 2040, which outlines 6 criteria that chart a path toward the development of a sustainable shipping industry by 2040. The criteria call on the industry to collectively create financial solutions that accelerate sustainability performance, diversify energy and fuel supply, increase transparency and accountability, and more. 

Sweden has pledged to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045. The country plans to achieve this goal by cutting 85% of its GHG emissions from 1990 levels, and offsetting the remaining emissions.

Rainforest Alliance today released its first independent evaluation of Asia Pulp and Paper's progress on implementing its Forest Conservation Policy, launched in 2013. RA's SVP of Forestry, Richard Donovan, and APP's managing director of sustainability, Aida Greenbury, discussed the company's progress - which RA described as 'moderate' - in a webinar on Wednesday.

GlobeScan is pleased to have recently completed a second comprehensive study of seafood consumers globally for The Marine Stewardship Council. We surveyed more than 25,000 consumers in 22 countries and found that a large majority of consumers are increasingly demanding independent verification of sustainability claims in supermarkets (72% this year compared to 68% in our first study in 2016).

The Hershey Company has announced that 30%of its globally sourced cocoa was independently certified and verified in 2014 - this reflects an accelerated pace for achieving its goal of sourcing 100% of its cocoa supply from certified and sustainable cocoa farms by 2020.