The NGOs Friends of the Earth Europe and Foodwatch International called on European Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans, Environment Commissioner Virginijus Sinkevičius and Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski on Monday 22 May to “veto” the legislative proposal on new genomic breeding techniques (NTGs), expected in early July (see also other news).
These NGOs are of the opinion, unlike the representatives of the EU agricultural organisations (see EUROPE 13180/6), that ‘new GMOs’ should be “strictly regulated and labelled as GMOs, in the interest of farmers and consumers as well as the environment”.
For Friends of the Earth Europe, if the Commission removes mandatory labelling of new GMOs, “farmers, producers and retailers will struggle to offer GMO-free food”.
At the end of the line, the consumers won’t know if they are buying food containing new GMOs or not.
Labelling requires, according to the two NGOs, a high level of traceability. “Only if a label is in place can traceability function along the food chain and the correct tests and certifications be put in place”. Continued application of the existing EU GMO legislation is essential, according to these NGOs, to protect consumer rights.
Link to the explained position of these two NGOs: https://aeur.eu/f/6zr (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)