New EU regulations on food containing GMOs are approved by the European Parliament

Brussels (AFP) – A European Parliament committee took the first steps Tuesday towards allowing EU member states to decide for themselves whether to allow the cultivation of highly controversial genetically modified (GMO) crops.

The 28 countries of the European Union have been deeply divided on this issue for years. Some, such as France, openly oppose it, while others, such as the UK, argue that the technology cannot simply be ignored if Europe wants to keep pace with the rest of the world.

For lack of a better solution, EU leaders reached a compromise in June that would give national governments the final say, even if a GMO product had already been approved at EU level. On Tuesday, the parliament’s environment committee approved the new rules by a vote of 53 to 11.

Significantly, the commission rejected the leaders’ recommendation that GMO companies be allowed to negotiate directly with member states to obtain approval, a move welcomed by environmental groups that feared the companies could exert undue influence on governments.

“The measures approved today will give member states the flexibility to restrict (and) ban the cultivation of GMO crops if they wish to do so,” said MEP Frederique Ries of the Liberal Democratic Alliance, who is overseeing the proposals in Parliament.

Member states that reject GMO cultivation will be able to cite environmental policy, spatial planning, land use, agricultural policy, public policy or potential socio-economic impacts as reasons for refusing authorisation, the parliament said in a statement.

Risk assessments carried out by the European Food Safety Authority should now “take into account the direct, indirect, immediate, delayed and cumulative effects of GMOs on human health and the environment, always taking into account the precautionary principle,” it added.

Environmental groups welcomed the committee vote.

MEPs “dramatically improved the text adopted (in June) … which was strongly influenced by the UK government’s pro-GMO position,” Greenpeace said.

“Today’s vote would give European countries a solid right to ban the cultivation of GMOs on their territory, making it harder for the biotech industry to challenge such bans in court.”

The cultivation of GM food has raised widespread suspicions in the EU on health and environmental grounds, even though these crops have repeatedly received safety certificates and are imported into the EU in large quantities for animal feed.

Several GMO crops have received EU approval, but after the first approval in 1998, only Monsanto’s MON810 maize is still grown, while two other types of maize and BASF’s Amflora potato have been abandoned.

Last year, US biotechnology giant Monsanto said it would no longer apply for permission to introduce new GMO products to the EU market.

Tuesday’s package now goes back to EU member states for further discussions before going back to Parliament for approval.