European Governments Call for Legal Analysis of GM Crop Proposal

On Monday July 13, 2015, European Union member states criticized a GM crop proposal by the European Commission that would allow for individual member states to restrict or prohibit the importation of authorized GM crops.

The proposal would allow a member state to exclude a GM crop from the state’s supply chain, even without a scientific basis, so long as the exclusion can be justified within EU law. This decision can be made despite the authorization of the GM crop for food or feed by the EU.

Critics of the proposal claim that leaving this decision to individual member states interferes with the idea of the EU’s single market. These members are calling upon the Farm Council to conduct an impact study, as well as the European Commission to determine the legal impacts of the proposal.

The Health and Food Safety Commissioner, Vytenis Andriukatis, said that the Commission will not conduct an impact study, as “[m]ember states are best placed to measure the potential effects or consequences on their own markets.”

The proposal can be read here.

Written by Tyler R. Etter- Research Assistant 
July 15, 2015