Threat of new GM crops in Europe

Following Commission proposals issued on 21st January and 10th February, EU member states will vote in coming weeks on whether to grow more GM maize in Europe and whether France and Greece countries should be forced to drop their national GMO bans.

The Comission was defeated on  March 2nd when EU countries voted in support of Austrian and Hungarian Mon810 bans!

We need to keep up the fight: for the first time in 10 years, European countries will decide whether to grow new GM crops in the EU.

France and Greece have banned the only GM crop currently authorised to be grown in the EU, Monsanto’s pesticide producing (Bt) maize MON 810. Under EU laws, countries are allowed to ban individual GM crops for environmental and health reasons.

• On 16th February 2009, an EU regulatory committee composed of representatives from the different member states could not reach a decision on whether to drop the French and Greek bans (non qualified majority vote).

• On 25th February 2009, the same regulatory committee also failed to reach a decision on whether two new GM maize (Bt11 produced by Syngenta, and 1507 produced by Pioneer) should be grown in Europe.
  
  
• The two GM maize and the two national bans will now be voted on by EU Ministers at an upcoming meeting. The date for this is not yet known but is probably NEXT MONTH (23-24 april Agriculture Council)

If no “qualified majority vote”* is reached at either or both of these meetings, the GMO files will be sent to a Council meeting where Ministers will be asked to vote. The most likely date for this would be the May Agriculture Council.

European  citizens reject GM crops and have done so consistently for more than ten years ago. Almost 60% of the EU population oppose the use of GMOs in agriculture according to the latest Eurobarometer from March 2008.[1]

GM proponents present GM crops as inevitable. However, GM crops are only grown on 2.4% of the world’s agricultural land and more than 50% of GM crops globally are grown in the US.

Commission proposal for Bt11

Commission proposal for 1507

NOTES:

[1] Special Eurobarometer 295. Attitudes of European citizens towards the environment. March 2008. Available at URL: http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_295_en.pdf

Why the two GM maize should NOT be grown in the EU

Why countries should keep their national GMO bans

* What is “qualified majority voting”?

Under EU rules, a “qualified majority vote” is needed in order to reach a decision. This is a weighted decision rule where each member state has a “weight” roughly based on population size. Germany for example has 29, Portugal 12 and Malta 3. When each of these countries votes, their weight is counted rather than just one vote. Therefore the vote of bigger countries like Germany, France and UK can be influential in defining a decision. Under the system, a certain number of votes, called “qualified majority” is need for a decision to be adopted. This has been fixed at 255 votes out of a total of 345.