Brussels, 11/01/2001 (Agence Europe) - Italian Agriculture Minister Alfonso Pecoraro Scanio, the member of the European Parliament Monica Frassoni (Italy, Green), her colleague Paul Lannoye, co-President of the Green/EFA Group, and representatives of the French and Italian wine industry met the press on Thursday to announce the setting up of European coordination between the Greens and producer and consumer associations in view of protecting quality wine against the risk that adoption of a regulation in favour of the production and marketing of genetically modified vines would present. Their goal is to avoid adoption, at the next Agriculture Council, of the draft directive aimed at adapting existing provisions regarding the marketing of materials for the vegetative propagation of the vine and, in that context, authorise plants that have been the subject of genetic manipulation.
Adoption of this directive was already deferred in December last at Italy's request. Concerned with "avoiding the mad vine", Mr. Pecoraro Scanio announced the creation, by his ministry of a committee of the wise made up of eminent scientists. This committee will be responsible for submitting, before 29 January and in view of its forwarding to the "Agriculture" Council and Parliament, an opinion on possible environmental and health risks of the production of genetically modified vines. If the conclusions of the scientists do not suffice to make Italy's partners back-step, it will ask them to review the issue under the precautionary principle. Both the Italian minister and Mr. Lannoye have called for the setting up of a veritable "front", bringing together the wine sector, consumer associations and Green members.
EUROPE recalls that this subject remains particularly sensitive in Italy, whereas adoption of this directive raises many fewer problems in other Member States. During the vote in the European Parliament, the Green Group was, moreover, divided on the subject. The fact that free movement does not necessarily mean that genetically modified products should be used, in the sense that it is producer organisations who draw up the rules in matters of the type of vine that may be used in regions of production, to a great extent explains approval of this draft directive by the European Parliament.