Approaches toward genetically modified plants at the Eastern border of European Union

Journal or Publishing Institution: Biokontroll

Study: https://www.biokontroll.hu/a-gentechnologiai-uton-modositott-noevenyek-megitelese-az-europai-unio-keleti-hataran/

Author(s): Darvas, B., and Székács, A.

Article Type: Report

Record ID: 448

Abstract: The acreage of genetically modified (GM) crops decreased in the European Union by 12% in 2009, as compared to the preceeding year, corresponding to 0.7‰ of the world GM crop production. Within the EU, national moratoria on sowing given GM crop varieties were announced in Austria (1999), Hungary (2005), Greece (2005), Poland (2006), Italy (2006), France (2008), Romania (2008), Germany (2009), Luxemburg (2009) and Bulgaria (2010). As for banning GMOs, Austria, Greece and Poland are outstanding, having announced GMO-free status for their entire terrain. Large areas joined GMO-free zones in Albania, Belgium, Croatia, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Slovenia and the United Kingdom. Among major corn growers of the EU, Hungary and Italy have never grown GM corn of genetic event MON 810, while France suspended its production in 2008, upon three years of cultivation.

Certain European countries express their definite opposition to given statements of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) on GMOs. Such debated issues include, for example, (i) the form of statistical analysis for environmental risk assessment (ERA); (ii) the validity range of the ecotoxicological approaches; and (iii) the applicability of GM crops in environmentally friendly technologies. An additional concern in registration of Bt-crops is the erroneous concept that considers these plants as simply new varieties, meanwhile they are also new formulations of Cry toxin derivatives.

Cultivation of GM crops affects unfavorably absurdly the concurrent traditional and ecologiccal agricultural practices, as they are the producers in these practices, who have to provide verification that their produce is free of GMOs. The most accepting within the EU towards GM crops are the population of the Czech Republic, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain, where 26-35% of those questioned were in favor of the technology. In contrast, most rejective are citizens of Cyprus, Finland, France, Germany,.Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Sweden and Slovenia, where 70-87% of the surveyed population were opposing.

Keywords: genetically modified (GM) crops, European Union, environmental risk assessment (ERA), validity range, environmentally friendly technologies, acceptability, MON 810, Cry toxin derivatives

Citation: Darvas, B., and Székács, A., 2010. Approaches toward genetically modified plants at the Eastern border of European Union. Biokontroll, 1, 13 –23.