By Henrietta Billings - 15th June 2004
National governments have blocked calls from Brussels to allow the import of GM oilseed rape into the EU.
The European Commission's expert committee made up of national officials from all 25 member states cast their ballots under an EU vote-weighting system.
Votes by new EU member states swung the majority behind opposition to the herbicide resistent GM crop.
A blocking group of Austria, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Malta, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Poland and the UK rejected the approval of the Genetically Modified Organism known as GT73.
Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Netherlands. Latvia, Portugal, Slovakia and Sweden backed release of the rape seed.
Germany, Ireland, Spain and Slovenia abstained.
"The committee...representing the member states, did not reach the qualified majority necessary to support the commission proposal to authorise the oilseed rape," Brussels said in a statement.
The result was welcomed by green campaigners who referred to the vote as a "small earthquake and a big swing against GM products."
"This is a very big signal that Eastern European countries are not supporting the US line on GM foods," Adrian Bebb from Friends of the Earth told EUpolitix.
The case will now go before European ministers who will have three months to either approve or reject it.
Speaking to this website after the vote, the bio-tech industry said it hoped member states would follow advice of the Europe's leading food safety agency and approve GT73.
"We hope the Commission will move fast and pass the decision onto the Council and that the Council follows the EFSA's positive safety assessment," said Adeline Farrelly, spokesman for Europabio.
In March this year the European Food Safety Authority, gave the genetically modified oilseed rape all clear.
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