AgroPages-Scientists slam EU genetically modified organism block-Agricultural news

Plans by EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas to block the registration of two genetically modified maize lines are "totally unacceptable", says an organisation of European scientists. The proposals are based on "discredited scientific arguments" and are a "significant threat" to European agriculture, the European Federation of Biotechnology (EFB) says in an open letter delivered to the Commissioner in late November. The letter is in response to Commissioner Dimas' proposals that applications for cultivation of Dow AgroSciences/DuPont's insect-resistant 1507 maize and Syngenta's insect-resistant Bt11 maize should not be approved.

Commissioner Dimas has cited uncertainties over environmental impacts, even though the European Food Safety Authority had already given environmental clearance to the GM maize lines. As a result, his stance has been criticised by the industry and other Commissioners. The EFB has joined these calls and urged the Commissioner to reconsider his proposals.

The draft decisions "do not have a scientific basis", says the EFB, which represents a group of universities, academic institutes and companies. It refutes the claim that the scientific studies cited in the draft decisions demonstrate environmental risks presented by Bt maize. "Nine out of the 11 publications actually confirm the environmental safety of Bt maize cultivation and in fact do not identify any environmental risk with respect to the cultivation of Bt maize in the EU," the EFB points out. Of the two remaining studies that allege potential environmental risks, one is a philosophical approach rather than being based on scientific data, while the other is "a questionable extrapolation from laboratory tests", the EFB says.

The EFB also points out that Bt is a commonly used insecticide spray in organic agriculture. It highlights the fact that environmental assessments of Bt sprays, with their much higher concentrations, "have not been properly carried through and also not published in peer-reviewed journals". It contrasts this with the substantial body of peer-reviewed scientific data generated over several years on the safety of Bt toxins used in GM crops.

Bt maize ensures productivity in years of heavy infestations of European corn borers (Ostrinia nubilalis) and reduces the need for pesticides, the EFB says. Trials have demonstrated that the maize is more profitable for farmers and is healthier because of lower contamination with hazardous fungal mycotoxins, it adds. The organisation also highlights the concerns that have already been raised about the impact of EU GMO policy on supplies of feed and food.