GM maize crop may get EU green light

The European Commission is proposing to allow cultivation of maize 1507, as the variety is known, a genetically modified maize variety

Maize 1507 would be only the third GM crop allowed for cultivation within the EU, owing to consumer and national governments having strong reservations about the impact of genetically modified food.

The GM variety is designed to produce its own insecticide against the European corn borer, a destructive moth whose caterpillars feast on corn ears and stalks.

Environmental groups have oppose the crop’s introduction; fearing maize 1507 will harm non-target species and lead to a surge in the use of a toxic herbicide to which maize 1507 has been made resistant.

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has given the variety a green light in six reports since 2005. However, some restrictions were included in order to prevent collateral damage, such as planting 20% of conventional corn as a buffer zone around a GM crop. The EFSA does not have the final authorisation on the crop. Based on its advice, the European Commission issued a draft decision to authorise the crop. EU member states had to sign off the decision through a regulatory committee, made up of experts from each government.

The committee failed to reach a consensus owing to the wide ranging concerns from countries such as Austria and France, member states that are strictly opposed to growing GM crops, while Holland and Spain are more GM friendly.

Instead of referring to the Council of Members, the commission left the file in abeyance.

Agricultural giant Dupont Pioneer, had requested approval to grow the crop in 2001 but 12 years later, the company still had not been granted a decision.

Dupont finally fought the action in court and in September, the EU Court of Justice in Luxembourg, criticised the commission’s failure to reach a decision. The commission is now pressing member states to take a decision.

However, if the Council of Ministers does not gain a weighted majority to reject the crop’s cultivation within three months, the European Commission has the right to authorise growing the crop and has indicated this will happen.

The commission also pressed member states to avoid lengthy deadlocks in the future, by reconsidering a three year old proposal to reform the EU’s GM authorization procedures. The commission considers individual member states could decide to restrict a given GM crop on their own territory.

The Health commission is seeking to revive the commission’s “cultivation proposal,” which was proposed in 2010, to reform authorization procedures.

Under this plan, an agreement from the European Commission would remain valid across the EU by default, but individual member states could decide not to grow an authorized crop on their territory, even if EFSA considers there are not any scientific objections.

France, Germany, and the UK are believed to be opposed the idea of allowing countries to make individual decisions.

Some member states have questioned the validity of the proposal and consider the concept of renationalising procedures may be illegal, and that measures should remain valid across the EU.

Only two GM crops are permitted for cultivation within the EU; and only one crop is actually grown, Monsanto’s MON 810 maize, which was approved in 1998.

The crop represents 1.35% of total maize surface grown within the EU, the majority being grown in Spain. However, 51 GM crops are authorised for importation into the EU, mainly soya and maize, for feed use. The Journal

GMO food result in health problems of 18 million Americans - report

Soy and corn, which were genetically modified, could be a reason behind 18 million Americans’ intestinal disorders, says the new report by the Institute for Responsible Technology (IRT).

“Gluten sensitivity can range in severity from mild discomfort, such as gas and bloating, to celiac disease, a serious autoimmune condition that can, if undiagnosed, result in a 4-fold increase in death,” said Jeffrey M. Smith, executive director of IRT in a statement released on the Institute’s website.

Smith cited how a “possible environmental trigger may be the introduction of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) to the American food supply, which occurred in the mid-1990s,” describing the nine GM crops currently on the market.

In soy, corn, cotton (oil), canola (oil), sugar from sugar beets, zucchini, yellow squash, Hawaiian papaya, and alfalfa, “Bt-toxin, glyphosate, and other components of GMOs, are linked to five conditions that may either initiate or exacerbate gluten-related disorders,” according to Smith.

The report bases on data from the US Department of Agriculture, US Environmental Protection Agency records, medical journal reviews as well as international research.

The Institute’s report cites that modified crops contain high levels of the toxin at harvest and GMO-related damage was linked to five different areas: Intestinal permeability, imbalanced gut bacteria, immune activation and allergic response, impaired digestion, and damage to the intestinal wall.

Voice of Russia, RT
Read more: http://voiceofrussia.com/news/2013_11_27/GMO-food-result-in-18-million-Americans-health-problems-report-3448/

EU GMO: Healthy attitude

Healthy attitude

The European Union has some of the most stringent regulations in the world for genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

While there was some hope that a free-trade agreement — also known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) — under negotiation between the EU and the US will eventually allow a chosen few American GMOs into the EU, the NSA spying scandal has put a strain on the talks.

As of today, only two GM crops have been approved for cultivation in Europe. The more widely grown of the two, MON810, is a type of maize that helps fight off pests. The other permitted product is a potato for industrial use called Amflora. Its waxy starch content is used for making paper.

However, most EU member states have legally banned cultivation of one or both of these crops approved at the EU level.

GMO BANS

Ever since GMO crops started expanding in the 80s and 90s, German farmers remained opposed to genetically engineered fruit and vegetables for fear of health risks and environmental contamination. . Presently, safeguard clauses on GMO food are applied in Italy, Poland, Austria, France, Greece, Hungary, Germany and Luxembourg.

Hostility has been so strong that last year, BASF, the German chemical giant, moved its biotech division away from Germany to the US. Europe has refused to yield to America’s Monsanto, which, too, is packing up to leave.

A spokesperson of the American GM seed producer described it “political obstructionism” and said the company has now reconciled to the fact that it would focus on conventional seed peddling in the continent. The truth of the matter is Europeans do not want genetically modified crops. While GMO cultivation approvals are agreed jointly at the EU level, individual governments can introduce safeguards if they believe that cultivation could present a health or environmental risk.

SAFETY STANDARDS

While most nations in the world, including India, have no GMO-free platform to protect their citizens, Europe is rapidly becoming the leading opposition to GM foods. Often referred to unsympathetically as “Frankenstein foods,” genetically modified crops have time and again been the theme of public disquiet and the target of environmental groups in Europe.

What is at stake ranges from plain, simple choices of shoppers to basic constitutional rights.

The essential foundations of the EU’s policies are tight safety standards and freedom of choice for consumers and farmers.

SERIOUS HEALTH RISKS

European scientists repeatedly warn that GM foods can create unpredictable, hard-to-detect side effects including infertility, immune problems, accelerated aging, faulty insulin regulation, and changes in major organs and the gastrointestinal system.

Research also shows that Europe is reducing pesticide use and increasing yields — without GM crops. It is supportive of small-scale farming systems that protect biodiversity, increase soil fertility, provide excellent food and deal with climate change.

Mohan Murti

(The author is former Europe Director, CII, and lives in Cologne, Germany.)

HBL