WTO ruling to reopen EU splits on GM

A WTO ruling is set to rekindle a heated EU debate over GM food - despite European Commission assurances of business as usual.

The WTO arbitration panel case has been delayed for the third time and is now expected by the end of February.

Canada, Argentina and the US complained that EU member states are blocking GM imports.

WTO documents leaked to the media in December suggested that the EU has lost the transatlantic dispute. 

If confirmed, the decision is expected to crack open the GM fault line that runs through EU member states.

Europe’s capitals remain sharply divided over concerns about the environmental and health impact of GM products.

Despite the lifting of a European GM import moratorium; Europe’s governments have been unable to agree any GM authorisations since 1998.

Current EU presidency holders, Austria head a group of member states including Greece and Luxembourg that vehemently oppose GM crops, blocking authorisations.

This leaves the commission through a complex default procedure to ‘rubber stamp’ authorisations on member states behalf.

So far only a handful of GM products have been approved, fuelling US allegations that Europe’s convoluted approvals process merely aids EU member states’ feet dragging.

And accusations against the commission of a ‘leadership vacuum’ on GM have been hard to shake off. Currently GM policy is split between six competing commission portfolios, and is viewed as lacking any coherent direction.

But the commission has insisted that whatever the WTO ruling, there would be no adjustment to current convoluted EU approvals procedures.

A commission source told EUpolitix on Thursday that there was no leadership vacuum, and GM approvals would continue to be dealt with on a case by case basis.

“This panel decision will not change anything. Whatever happens, this panel is not a challenge to our legislation.”

“Bottom line for us is that nothing is put on to the market unless we have done thorough investigations and proved that there is no environmental or health risk from that product,” said the source.

“We are confident that even when we rubber stamp products they are completely safe.”

However, an EU diplomat on Wednesday said that the commission was coming under increasing pressure to review the existing GM law.

“The pressure is building all the time for a serious debate, and there is a limit as to how long the commission can resist the pressure,” said the diplomat according to a Reuters report.

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