----- forwarded message ----- Date: Mon, 26 May 2003 15:58:09 +0100 From: bernard blanc <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: GMO
One info from Europe. In struggle! Bernard Blanc. Subject: [environmentaljournalists] press release: European environment committee votes for stronger gmo laws Date: Thu, 22 May 2003 13:46:44 +0200 From: Geert Ritsema <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Organization: Friends of the Earth Europe To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Friends of the Earth Europe Press release 22 May 2003 For immediate release xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx EUROPEAN ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE VOTES FOR STRONGER GMO LAWS Brussels, 22 May. The Environment Committee of the European Parliament has today voted for stronger laws governing GMOs. The vote, one week after the United States started a WTO complaint against the EU, paves the way for better consumer choice and action to protect non-GMO and organic farmers from genetic contamination. The vote by the Environment Committee called for stricter rules on the labelling and traceability of GMOs and for legally binding rules to secure non- genetically modified (GM) agriculture and non-GM food in Europe. The Committee voted in favour of: 1) Legally binding rules to ensure the so-called “co-existence” of GM and non-GM products in food and agriculture. The Committee concluded that if GMOs are allowed to be grown in Europe on a commercial scale, additional legislation is needed to ensure that non-GM farmers are protected and that GM free food will be available. This position reflects the wishes of the vast majority of the European consumers to be able to choose GM-free food. The Environment Committee goes further than the European Commission who has so far indicated that it only wants voluntary guidelines to ensure GM free food and agriculture. 2) Lowering the threshold (=tolerance level for GMOs before the labelling scheme kicks in) from 0.9% (the position of the European Council) to 0.5%. Major food manufacturers and retailers currently work to 0.1%. The Committee voted against: 3) The position of the European Council to allow –up to a level of 0.5 % and for a period of three years- traces of unauthorised GMOs in food and animal feed. Geert Ritsema of Friends of the Earth Europe said: “This is a clear political signal the European Commission cannot deny. Voluntary guidelines are just not enough to secure GM free food. Legally binding rules are needed to protect farming and consumers from GMO contamination. This is what the consumer demands and this is what the Environment Committee has supported. The Committee has also thrown out the Commission’s plan to allow unauthorised GMOs into the foodchain. Even the US do not allow such a thing.” In July, the plenary of the Parliament, will vote on the amendments adopted today in the Environment Committee. Next week (Wednesday 28 May) Friends of the Earth is organising a conference on co-existence of GMOs and non-GMOs in the European Parliament. The conference is organised together with retailer organsiation Eurocoop, the Greens in the European Parliament and the Heinrich Böll Foundation. More than 150 participants are expected, among them representatives from retailers, farmers organisations, consumers organisations, the EU members states and members of the European Parliament. Contact: Geert Ritsema; 02-542 0182/ 00-31-6-290 05 908 For more information on the co-existence conference: http://www.foeeurope.org/GMOs/conference/home.htm
