Tag: GMOs

Europe has failed to learn the lessons from many environmental and health disasters like Chernobyl, leaded petrol and DDT insecticides, and is now ignoring warnings about bee deaths, GM food and nanotechnology, according to an 800-page report by the European Environment Agency.

Environmental groups frustrated by Commissioner John Dalli’s outward support of the genetically modified food industry are hoping his successor will take a tougher line.

Rats fed a lifetime diet of Monsanto's genetically modified corn or exposed to its top-selling weedkiller Roundup suffered tumours and multiple organ damage, says a French study published yesterday (19 September).

Politicians sometimes shy away from science, but they should be clear about why they reject scientific evidence in future, the European Commission’s first chief scientific advisor told EurActiv. In an interview, she says GMOs are a good example of where policy has trumped science.

French maize growers and seed companies have appealed a ban on the cultivation of a strain of genetically modified maize to the country's highest court, saying it was unjustified and economically harmful for farmers.

The European Food Safety Authority, seeking to deflect criticism over the independence of its work, yesterday (5 March) announced moves to clarify disclosure rules and guidelines on who can serve as scientific experts.

Insecticides present in one of Europe’s most controversial genetically modified crops, MON810 maize, may be harmful to humans, French and German researchers say in a new study that could pour fuel over calls asking to limit such plants in the EU.

The EU agency charged with reviewing the safety of biotech crops and food products has “frequent conflicts of interest” with the industries it is supposed to evaluate, says a report that adds renewed doubts about its scientific assessments.

The United States remained the primary backer of biotech crop technology in 2011, but adoption spread internationally as the total global planted area of genetically modified seeds grew 8% from a year ago, a new report says.

Europe's largest and most influential biotech industry group, whose members include Monsanto, Bayer and other GM companies, is recruiting high-profile "ambassadors" to lobby European leaders on GM policy.

The European Parliament yesterday (5 July) backed plans to let member states choose whether to ban the cultivation of genetically-modified (GM) crops on their territory, giving a detailed list of grounds on which such bans could be imposed.

European Union governments could ban the cultivation of genetically modified (GM) crops to maintain public order in the face of popular opposition to the technology, the bloc's executive said in a draft document.

A petition for a Europe free of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) has hit the one million signatories target and will be handed to European Commission President José Manuel Barroso, campaigners have announced.