Regulator opens public consultation on genetically modified yeast ethanol trial

The Gene Technology Regulator has opened public consultation on an application from Ethanol Technologies Pty Ltd to run fermentation experiments using genetically modified yeasts to produce ethanol. The regulator has prepared a draft risk assessment for the proposal, which would operate at a facility in Muswellbrook, New South Wales, for five years. The invitation to comment is published in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette of 3 November 2026 under official reference DIR 231.

Under the notice, the regulator is assessing the application before deciding whether to issue a licence. The assessment covers experiments on the fermentation of sugars derived from plant material using GM yeasts, and the regulator has prepared a Risk Assessment and Risk Management Plan (RARMP) for the application. Written submissions are invited specifically on the protection of human health and safety and the environment.

What the application proposes

The trial would be conducted over a five-year period at a single facility in Muswellbrook, in the New South Wales Hunter region. The organisms involved are genetically modified yeasts, used to ferment sugars derived from plant material into ethanol.

According to the notice, neither the GM yeasts grown in the process nor any derived products would be used for human food or animal feed. That exclusion is stated in the gazette notice itself and frames the scope of the risk assessment now out for comment.

How to take part

The consultation is open until 11 December 2026, and the regulator has set out specific requirements for anyone wishing to make a submission. The RARMP and related information are available through the consultation hub at https://consultations.health.gov.au/ogtr/dir-231consultation, or from the regulator’s office.

• Submissions must reference DIR 231.
• They must be received by 11 December 2026.
• They should address the protection of human health and safety and the environment.
• Written submissions may be sent to the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator, MDP 54, GPO Box 9848, Canberra ACT 2601.
• Enquiries: telephone 1800 181 030, website www.ogtr.gov.au, e-mail ogtr@health.gov.au.

The decision that follows

The consultation period precedes a decision by the regulator on whether to issue a licence for the trial. The notice describes the current stage as an assessment, with the RARMP published in draft consultation form rather than as a final determination.

No licence has been granted at this stage, and the gazette notice sets no date for the regulator’s decision beyond the closing date for submissions. The document also records the registration details of the notice itself: Government Notices Gazette C2026G00709, registered 3 November 2026.

The outcome matters beyond the applicant: a licence would allow five years of fermentation work with GM yeasts at Muswellbrook, while a refusal would end the proposal in its current form. Because the regulator has limited the consultation to health, safety and environmental protection, those are the grounds on which submissions can shape the assessment that underpins the final decision.

Source: Commonwealth of Australia Gazette, C2026G00709, 3 November 2026, Government Notices (official reference: DIR 231).