Mar 4, 2010

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First proposals for new EU approval procedures in summer

Cultivation of genetically modified plants: Member States should decide for themselves

The EU Member States should in future decide for themselves whether genetically modified plants that have received EU approval are allowed to be cultivated in their country or not. The European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Policy John Dalli announced in Brussels on Tuesday that first proposals for this are expected in the summer. At the same time the EU Commission granted approval for the cultivation of the GM-Amflora potato. This is thus the first GM plant to receive EU approval for cultivation since 1998. The green light was also given for the import and processing of three further GM-maize lines.

The president of the EU Commission Jose Manuel Barroso had already announced changes to the Approval Procedure in September 2009 in the guidelines for the new EU Commission. The aim is to make it possible for nations to take this decision for themselves, without putting the whole GMO approval procedure into question. This should overcome the political blockade of Member States in the approval of GMO products.

Until now the EU Member States in the Council of Ministers or in the Regulations Committee have not been able to agree on a single case of approval for a GM-plant or the food and feed stuffs produced from it. In such cases, as stipulated under EU law, the EU commission must grant approval if the legally specified requirements have been met.

In return, some Member States such as Germany, Austria and France made use of a safeguard clause that allows a national ban for GM plants to protect the human health or the environment. In such cases, however, the Member States must justify this scientifically by presenting new findings on the GMO product concerned that put its safety in question. Until now, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has classified all such scientific grounds as not valid. However, motions for the abrogation of the national bans on cultivation also found no majority in the Council of Ministers.

According to the plans of the Commission, the EU Member States should in future be able to ban cultivation of GM plants on their own territory even if there is no scientific evidence to indicate a risk for health or environment.

Socio-economic criteria as basis for a national ban

Socio-economic criteria may instead be drawn on as the grounds for a national cultivation ban. The Commission is currently working together with the Member States on a list of suitable socio-economic criteria. These may include, for example, possible effects of GM plants on the conventional small-scale farming or on the local supply of foodstuffs. or the consequences for the economy and prosperity, biodiversity or cultural values.

The question remains open of how such socio-economic criteria can be assessed and weighted. Critics such as the German Association of Biotechnology Industries have voiced concerns against the introduction of such criteria: There are no legal grounds to extend the criteria for approval beyond the scientific safety assessment. Such a procedure also endangers the stability of the law since socio-economic criteria are unavoidably subjective. In addition socio-economic factors are assessed through forecasting future markets. The success or failure of a product can only be decided on a free market. Also it has not been clarified whether the shifting of the political decision making authority to the Member States is compatible with the WTO contracts signed by the EU.

By the summer, the new Commission, which has been in office since February, wants to present elaborated plans on how “a common, scientifically based approval procedure can be combined with the right of EU Member States to decide for themselves whether they want to cultivate GM varieties on their territory or not”.

Approvals for the import and trade of GMO products should continue to be carried out centrally on a joint level and without national leeway.

Granting of approval for Amflora and MON863 crosses

On Tuesday the Commission granted permission for the culture of the starch potato Amflora developed by the BASF corporation and the utilisation of residue from the industrial process as animal feed. The approval process for the plant, which contains pure amyl pectin starches for technical applications, e.g. in paper production, lasted 13 years. However Amflora potatoes are not approved for use as a food stuff, solely “accidental, technically unavoidable admixtures” up to 0.9% are allowed. Farmers must adhere to specific conditions for cultivation.

In addition, various crosses of the already approved maize MON863 were granted permission for import and processing to fodder in Europe.

These approvals evoked fierce criticism from opponents of gene technology such as Greenpeace or Member States such as Austria. The point of contention is still the antibiotic resistance genes contained in these GM plants. However, the new EU Commissioner for Health and Consumer Policy John Dalli regards the discussion on the safety assessment of this plant as closed. In July of last year the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) published its until now last opinion and confirmed the previous positive safety assessments of Amflora potatoes and MON863 maize. EFSA’s safety assessments is also shared by the Central Commission for Biosafety in Germany, which published an updated appraisal of the antibiotic resistance genes in genetically modified plants in January 2009.

“It is clear to me” said John Dalli, “that there are no more scientific questions that need to be investigated. All scientific aspects and in particular safety concerns have already been extensively taken into consideration. Further delay in granting approval cannot be justified.”

Amflora cultivation still this year

According to Peter Eckes the president of BASF Plant Science, commercial cultivation of Amflora potatoes is planned in the Czech Republic and in Germany still in this year. The planting season starts in April. In the coming years cultivation should also take place in the Netherlands and in Sweden.

In Austria a national ban on cultivation will be enacted, announced the Health Minister Alois Stöger. A ministry spokeswoman commented that corresponding preparations are already underway. Such a reaction is not expected in Germany. The approval and cultivation of Amflora potatoes is a concerted aim of the current coalition agreement. Germany had also supported the approval of Amflora at the EU level.