EU GM task force supported by majority of member states

Brussels, 19 Oct 2004

Some 13 countries have given their support to the joint Danish-Italian request to set up a European task force to ensure the co-existence of genetically modified (GM) crops and others crops, the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council announced on 19 October.

At the meeting of the EU agriculture ministers on 18 October, Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovenia, Spain and the Netherlands all agreed with Denmark and Italy on the need to collect and disseminate information at EU level.

Identifying research requirements concerning co-existence should be done at a pan-European level, they stated, pointing to the need to set limit values for labelling GMOs in seeds.

All 15 countries suggested that 'the decision by the Commission to include 17 genetically modified types of maize in the common catalogue of varieties should have been taken only once the Commission's report on experience with the Member States' implementation of the rules governing co-existence has been published,' stated the Council.

EU Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development and Fisheries, Franz Fischler, welcomed the proposal to adopt a law on co-existence at national level and suggested creating a network between Member States to exchange information and ideas on new practices and experiences.

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