EC freezes GM crop approval process

The European Commission has ruled that there will be a freeze on the approval process of any further genetically modified crops until a concrete decision is made on whether Member States will be given authority to decide on the issue themselves, the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development reports. The ruling comes two years after the Commission first proposed the idea of allowing greater flexibility on the crop issue among member states. The proposal has to be approved by a majority of the Member States and the European Parliament.

There are seven crops awaiting approval from the Commission: six varieties of maize and one variety of soybean. By allowing only two forms of GM crops so far, the European Union has one of the strictest policies on the issue of any region or country in the world. In comparison, the USA allow for the cultivation and development of more than 90 genetically modified organisms. The full article is available here.

BASF has explained that they will "discontinue the pursuit of regulatory approvals for the Fortuna, Amadea, and Modena potato projects in Europe because continued investment cannot be justified due to uncertainty in the regulatory environment and threats of field destructions." The full statement of BASF is available here.