BRUSSELS, BELGIUM — FEFAC, FEDIOL and COCERAL on Feb. 5 urged the E.U. Commission to lift immediately the present “de-facto” moratorium on genetically-modified (GM) import authorizations for food, feed and technical uses to prevent further threats to the E.U. food security as well as to the economic sustainability of the food, feed and E.U. livestock sector.
Despite these increasing threats, the E.U. authorization system for GM import is on hold since November 2013 due to merely political considerations, the groups said. There are currently 12 GM crop import authorizations awaiting a final decision by the E.U. College of Commissioners, following completion of the EFSA scientific assessment and E.U. risk management process.
The E.U. risks facing a situation of serious shortages of the much needed import of agricultural commodities for food, feed and technical uses, the groups said. The risk is increasing that entire shipments of agricultural commodities, regardless of whether GM, non-GM or organic products, will be blocked at E.U. borders because of technically unavoidable traces of the “blocked” GM products detected in imported consignments.
If decisions for import authorizations are delayed any further, E.U. business operators could bear massive extra-costs.
Source: World Grain
FEB
2015
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