The infamous celebrities of Eagle Rest: regulating the coexistence of genetically modified and non-genetically modified crops in Australia ten years after Marsh v Baxter
Date
2025
Authors
Ivanov, M.
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Journal article
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Griffith Law Review, 2025; 1-23
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Michail Ivanov
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Abstract
In 2015, the Supreme Court of Western Australia (Court of Appeal) heard a case in which Marsh, an organic farmer, sued his neighbour, Baxter, for negligence and nuisance after Marsh found swathes of Baxter’s genetically modified canola on his farm. This was the novel case of Marsh v Baxter, concerning the coexistence of genetically modified and non-genetically modified crops. Ten years on, the decision in Marsh v Baxter has left a number of uncertainties about how similar cases may play out, if they arose. This article revisits Marsh v Baxter and reflects on its regulatory impact across Australia. It finds that the regulatory frameworks applicable to crops, whether genetically modified, organic or otherwise, remain inconsistent. With a focus on genetic modification and in light of the increasing advances in biotechnologies, including genome editing, this article calls for a reconsideration of the current regulatory frameworks so that the regulation be proactive and responsible, allowing for the coexistence of existing and emerging biotechnologies by taking into account matters beyond those purely related to health, safety and economics. In reflecting on the post-Marsh v Baxter regulatory environment, other jurisdictions can similarly consider how they may regulate crop coexistence in a responsible and ethical manner.
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© 2025 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent.