After several years of debate on the issue, the European Union has approved a law that gives member states the right to restrict or ban genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in their territory.
A provisional agreement was recently reached between the EU Commission, EU Parliament and the Council, despite vigorous lobbying against the measure by leading multinationals. Biotech giants had pushed for a clause in the legislation that would force governments to consult with them before terminating any crop.
“The agreement, if confirmed, would meet member states’ consistent calls since 2009 to have the final say on whether or not GMOs can be cultivated on their territory, in order to better take into account their national context and, above all, the views of their citizens,” said EU Food Safety Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis in a statement.
Previously, EU-approved crops required legal action by any of its countries that opposed the cultivation of certain types of crops including GMO. Now, any member state is permitted to unilaterally ban a particular genetically modified variety of seed – or even “groups of GMOs defined by crop or trait” – and demand that their neighbors do not contaminate their fields.
While hailed by countries who had pushed for the law, it was also criticized by some for being too ambiguous.
The policy director for Greenpeace EU, Marco Contiero, said the law is likely to lead to lengthy legal battles against EU nations who try to take advantage of banning or restricting GMO crops.
“Environment ministers say they want to give countries the right to ban GM crop cultivation on their territory, but the text they have agreed does not give governments a legally solid right,” Contiero said. “It ties their hands by not allowing to use evidence of environmental harm to ban GM cultivation. This leaves those countries that want to say ‘no’ to GM crops exposed to legal attacks by the biotech industry.”
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