> It was reported 2 days ago on a European channel seen on Satellite TV that the
> German Parliament voted to continue the ban on GMOs - apparently due
> to a report from Luxembourg about the deadly link between pollinators
> and GMOs.
>
> http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/0,1518,618913,00.html
> DATE: 14.04.2009
> Germany has banned the cultivation of GM corn, claiming that MON 810
> is dangerous for the environment. But that argument might not stand up
> in court and Berlin could face fines totalling millions of euros if
> American multinational Monsanto decides to challenge the prohibition
> on its seed.
> However the ban could prove costly for the German government. Experts
> recently told SPIEGEL that it will be hard to prove conclusively that
> MON 810 damages the environment, which could enable Monsanto to win a
> court case opposing the ban and potentially expose the government to
> $7.9-9.2 million in damages.
> MON 810 was approved for cultivation in Europe by the European Union
> in 1998 and is currently the only GM crop which can be grown in
> Germany. The plant produces a toxin to fight off a certain pest, the
> voracious larvae of the corn borer moth. The crop was due to be
> planted this year on a total area of around 3,600 hectares (8,896
> acres) in Germany. The cultivation of MON 810 is already banned in
> five other EU member states, namely Austria, Hungary, Greece, France
> and Luxembourg.
>
> http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601100&sid=aQGg.HOIcKv8&refer=germany
>
> http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSLE218443
>
> http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/15/business/global/15gmo.html
> 14.04.2009
> GERMANY BARS GENETICALLY MODIFIED CORN
> Germany announced plans on Tuesday to ban the only genetically
> modified strain of corn grown in the European Union, dealing a new
> blow to the American manufacturer, Monsanto, and raising the specter
> of trade tensions with the United States.
> The German agriculture minister, Ilse Aigner, said that the move was
> intended to protect the safety of consumers and the environment. But
> she underlined that it would not represent a blanket ban on
> genetically modified crops.
> Skepticism among consumers about the safety of genetically modified
> products and about their effect on the environment has made Europe one
> of the most difficult markets for Monsanto and for other makers of
> such crops.
> A particular headache for biotechnology companies is that countries
> retain the right to impose their own bans on cultivation of products
> approved by the European Union, while they examine new scientific
> findings. It can take years for a company to force those governments
> to lift such bans.
> The European Commission, the executive body, has been pushing member
> governments to ease rules on genetically modified crops to enable
> greater quantities of lower cost foods and animal feeds to be grown in
> Europe.
> The commission has also been seeking to ease tensions with Argentina,
> Canada and the United States, where modified crops are grown.
> Those countries won a lawsuit at the World Trade Organization in 2006
> obliging the European Union to ease remaining bans on the import and
> cultivation of genetically modified products. The United States still
> could impose punitive duties on the Europeans for continuing to block
> trade.
> Spain grows about 80,000 hectares of the genetically modified corn,
> the largest quantity in the European Union. Germany grows 3,000
> hectares out of its total corn crop of about 2 million hectares,
> making the move to ban the crop in Germany highly symbolic.
> The Czech Republic, Portugal and Poland are among countries still
> growing the crop, while France and Luxembourg are among countries to
> have recently imposed bans on cultivation.
> The European Food Safety Authority currently is reviewing the Monsanto
> product because European Union consent to market the product has
> expired. Even so, E.U. rules allow the product to remain on the market
> during the authorityís assessment.
>
> http://www.cbc.ca/technology/story/2009/04/14/tech-090414-germany-corn.html
> DATE: 14.04.2009
> Genetically modified corn can no longer be grown commercially in Germany.
> German Agriculture Minister Ilse Aigner announced Tuesday that the
> government is banning the cultivation of MON 810 maize. That strain of
> corn is the only genetically modified crop that Germany had allowed to
> be cultivated in the country.
> Aigner said she has concluded the crop poses a danger to the environment.
> The corn has already been banned by five other European Union
> countries: France.Austria.Hungary. Luxembourg.
> Greece.
> The European Commission has tried to overturn those bans, but has so
> far been unsuccessful. The crop has been approved as safe by the
> European Food Safety Authority, and the commission is concerned about
> potential trade disputes arising from the bans.
> Opponents of genetically modified foods say their long-term effects on
> human health and the health of the environment have not been studied
> enough.
> Peer-reviewed scientific studies have demonstrated that the
> pesticide-producing MON810 maize, developed by US agro-chemical
> company Monsanto, has negative effects on the environment and on
> biodiversity. See:
> http://www.greenpeace.org/eu-unit/press-centre/policy-papers-briefings/environmental-and-health-impac
>
> See also on GMO-Compass:
> http://www.gmo-compass.org/eng/gmo/db/127.docu.html
> Further information:
> EFSA: Request from the European Commission related to the safeguard
> clause invoked by Austria on maize MON810 and T25 according to Article
> 23 of Directive 2001/18/EC
> http://www.efsa.europa.eu/EFSA/efsa_locale-1178620753812_1211902209965.htm
> Proposal for a Council Decision concerning the privisional prohibition
> of the use and sale in Austria of genetically modified maize MON810
> http://register.consilium.europa.eu/pdf/en/09/st06/st06330.en09.pdf
>
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