GMO issues today- an introduction -- Public perception of plant biotechnology -- What is biotechnology? -- History and current uses of plant biotechnology -- Environmental concerns associated with GMOs -- Herbicide tolerance -- Virus resistance -- Insect resistance -- Second generation products (Quality-oils, proteins, starch etc.) -- Third generation products (biofactories etc.) -- GMO - Intellectual property rights -- Labelling issues -- Monitoring and risk assessment -- Ethical aspects of the GMO debate -- Hoaxes, positive and negative aspects of GMOs with examples -- Regulatory and legislature issues in the EU -- Biotechnology activities in the CEEC -- Regulatory and legislature issues in CEEC -- Regulatory and legislature issues in North America -- Modern biotechnology in food and agriculture: Risks and benefits for the developed world -- How to cope with GMOs: Implementation, monitoring and enforcement -- The use and implications of the Precautionary Principle -- Intellectual property rights: Consequences for world trade and social issues.