Greenpeace has collected the necessary million signatures from EU citizens to launch the first citizens’ initiative challenging the new policy on genetically modified food, which is driven by Maltese Commissioner John Dalli.
A Greenpeace spokesman in Brussels told The Times the initiative, the first of its kind, would soon be presented to the Commission. It calls on Mr Dalli to impose a moratorium on the cultivation of more genetically modified crops in the EU until the safety aspect of the process is strengthened.
“Mr Dalli’s latest proposals to allow member states to decide for themselves whether to allow the cultivation of GM crops in their territory will not move ahead in its present form as it does not make sense. It is an empty promise,” the spokesman said.
“However, if the proposal is reviewed, as many member states are now requesting, we are in favour of more flexibility. But the proposal has to be radically changed and will have to ensure that GM crops are safe before any authorisation is given,” he said.
The European Citizens’ Initiative is one of the major innovations of the Treaty of Lisbon, aiming to increase participatory democracy in the EU. The initiative enables one million EU citizens to call directly on the European Commission to bring forward an initiative of interest to them in an area of EU competence.
Greenpeace said through this initiative, it is expecting the Commission to act swiftly to address the concerns of European citizens, EU governments and independent scientists, as well as introducing a moratorium on all new approvals of GM crops until the EU authorisation system is strengthened. The initiative also calls for the establishment of “an independent, ethical, scientific body” to assess the impact of GM crops.
Greenpeace EU director Jorgo Riss said that people from all corners of Europe know that GM crops are bad for food and farming.
“Europeans are fed up with Barroso’s Commission pushing through GM crops in the face of public rejection – the Commission cannot ignore them. The strong support for this citizens’ initiative shows that Europeans want to see a moratorium on GM crops until scientific and ethical problems are solved.”
Upon his appointment as Commissioner for Health and Consumer Affairs, Mr Dalli ruffled the feathers of many pro-environment NGOs as he approved the authorisation of the cultivation of a GM potato for industrial use – the first such authorisation in 13 years.
Last July, Commissioner Dalli also launched a proposal aimed at giving member states the power to decide on future GM cultivations instead of the current regime where the EU decides on the process on behalf of member states.
Following a meeting of Agriculture Ministers in Brussels last week, the majority of member states opposed Mr Dalli’s proposal and asked for radical modifications to be introduced.
The debate on GMOs has been raging since the technology was first applied to food intended for consumption in the 1970s. Scientists supporting the use of GM crops argue that this technology is the solution to the world’s demand for food, which is growing at the same rate as the globe’s soaring population. However, detractors stress the risk of the unknown risks of genetic modification of crops, and especially the fact that there is no research into the possibility of GM crops mutating over generations with undesired consequences.