JIC releases a methodology for precision-bred field trials in England
This post steps beyond the regulatory change focus of this site but may be of interest to readers considering field trial methodologies and risk assessments for precision bred plants.
The John Innes Centre (JIC) has published guidelines for conducting field trials of precision-bred plants under England's new regulatory framework - the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Act 2023, operationalised by the Precision Breeding Regulations 2025. The document is intended as a resource for the plant science and crop breeding community.
The new field trial guidelines share JIC's approach to growing precision-bred organisms, recognising that the legislation leaves it to individual organisations to determine how they meet compliance requirements.
The guidance covers three areas:
- Confirming precision bred status, centred on whole genome sequencing using either short-read (e.g. Illumina) or long-read (e.g. Oxford Nanopore) technologies to confirm the absence of transgenic DNA. It also includes the k-mer based bioinformatics pipeline used for detection, and the internal precision-bred plant committee that reviews and approves all cases before environmental release.
- Detailed containment protocols for field trial management, including isolation distances by crop, pollen barriers, harvesting hygiene, and post-harvest volunteer management, with a minimum three-year gap before the same crop can be grown on a trial site.
- A detailed risk assessment document with suggested scenarios for potential risk such as accidental transgene persistence to combine harvester carry-over.
The guidelines are live on Zenodo: Precision-Bred Plants field trial guidance document 2026
Further reading