EU Seeks Advice on Long-Term Effects of GMO Crops

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GMW: EU Seeks Advice on Long-Term Effects of GMO Crops

" GM WATCH " <info

Wed, 30 Mar 2005 10:35:11 +0100

 

 

GM WATCH daily

http://www.gmwatch.org

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" Consumers have been exposed to this, animals on farms have been

exposed to eating huge amounts of GM feed with no long-term study. And

they

(the European Commission) are now admitting they haven't done the

research... "

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EU Seeks Advice on Long-Term Effects of GMO Crops

Reuters, BELGIUM: March 30, 2005

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/30135/story.htm

 

BRUSSELS - The European Commission wants to know how genetically

modified (GMO) crops might affect human and animal health in the

longer term,

eight years after the EU first allowed biotech crops, a document showed

on Tuesday.

 

In a tender published on its website, the Commission's environment unit

has advertised for interested parties to study the " potential

cumulative long-term effects " of individual groups of GMO crops, and

say where

more research is required.

 

Only a handful of GMO crops may be grown commercially on EU territory,

mostly maize types. These crop approvals were issued in 1997 and 1998,

before the bloc began a six-year moratorium on new GMO authorisations

that ended in May 2004.

 

" This task should be prioritised to take account of the types of GM

plants released within the Community at the present time and those

predicted in the near future, " the notice said.

 

Last week the Commission held its first debate on GMO policy in more

than a year, vowing to press ahead with authorising more gene-altered

crops and foods even if EU governments could not break years of deadlock

over the issue.

 

While new approvals are trickling in, they have so far related to

imported GMOs for use in food, animal feed and industrial processing.

No GMO

crop has been won EU approval for planting since 1998.

 

" This study is partly about finding out where the gaps are. There are

still some things about GMOs that we don't know...but we know more about

them now than we did at the time (in 1997 and 1998), " a Commission

official told Reuters.

 

But green groups said the tender demonstrated how little EU research

had been conducted on the long-term effects of GMOs on human and animal

health, as well as on the environment.

 

" We've a huge debate (on GMOs) for eight years and in that time there

have been no long-term studies, " said Adrian Bebb, GMO campaigner at

environment group Friends of the Earth.

 

" Consumers have been exposed to this, animals on farms have been

exposed to eating huge amounts of GM feed with no long-term study, " he

said.

" And they (Commission) are now admitting they haven't done the research

because they're calling a tender. "

 

A budget of 50,000 euros, excluding tax, has been allocated for the

study. The deadline for bids is May 17.

 

 

 

 

 

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