The coexistence of organic, conventional and genetically modified crops is currently the theme of a conference organised by the European Commission in Vienna on the initiative of Austria’s Agriculture Minister Josef Pröll, current President of the Agriculture Council. "It is not about a yes or a no, but about how", Minister Pröll and Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel stated at a first press conference on Wednesday. The conference had been suggested by Austria, and the Commission had willingly taken up the idea, Fischer Boel said. The plan is to discuss with a wide range of stakeholders and responsible parties possible ways of safeguarding freedom of choice for consumers and farmers alike.
Fischer Boel referred in particular to the report published by the Commission on 9 March, which concludes that EU rules on coexistence are not justified at present in view of the limited experience with the cultivation of genetically modified crops and the fact that the process of introducing national coexistence measures has not yet been completed. Furthermore, climatic, environmental and soil conditions in the individual EU countries vary widely. EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said the Commission had already created a good framework for national measures with the 2003 guidelines on coexistence, and could therefore determine which rules were permitted and which were not.
Pröll: National measures not always enough
Minister Pröll nevertheless also emphasised that national coexistence measures are not always enough given the proximity of fields in neighbouring countries. "We must also find cross-border coexistence solutions", he stressed.
Safeguard freedom of choice for consumers and farmers
"62% of the EU population have doubts about genetically modified food. The labelling obligation gave consumers freedom to choose. Genetically modified products are recognisable as such. We must now address the second important question, namely how this freedom of choice can be secured for farmers too", Pröll said. The conference should not be regarded as the end, but rather the beginning of the coexistence debate. The safety of consumers and of Austria’s farmers was increasingly becoming a central issue. In addition, authorisation procedures for genetically modified organisms (GMO) had to be sufficiently transparent – both in environmental and economic terms.
Dimas: Long-term impact not yet fully assessed
Dimas also pointed to a number of outstanding questions relating to genetic engineering, which need to be clarified in future. For example, there is as yet no satisfactory scientific assessment of the long-term impact. Among other things, the impact of GM crops on biodiversity is unknown. The EFSA, the European Food Safety Authority, is working on improved risk assessment. According to Commissioner Dimas, this is the only way to reduce the fully understandable scepticism of consumers.
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