The European Parliament Votes Against GMOs

Slow Food: “It’s a matter of democracy as well as ensuring food sovereignty”

Today, December 16, the European Parliament supported in great majority the objection proposed by the European Parliament’s environment committee to the decision of the European Commission to authorize the new GM maize variety NK603xT25. This is not a binding decision but it underlines a strong political act. In fact, Slow Food condemns the European Commission not only for the authorization of the two new GMO crops*, but also because it has disregarded the on-going objection process of the European Parliament, the institution which is directly elected by the European citizens and which expresses the points of views of the European people. The fact that the delegates of the Member States in the European Commission have overlooked the worries and concerns of European citizens is something that should not happen in an institution that claims to be the guiding voice of democracy.

Ursula Hudson, President of Slow Food Germany, affirmed: “We at Slow Food hope that the Parliament’s political opposition will bring about the suspension of the authorization of the glyphosate resistant GM maize, NK603xT25. We hope it will succeed in suspending any authorizations for GM food and feed as long as the authorization procedure has not been improved. The Commission must bear in mind the concerns expressed by single states, civil society organizations andconsumer movements. It’s a matter of safety as well as of ensuring food sovereignty, the right of peoples to define their own food and agriculture systems.”

*Backstory:

On December 4, the European Commission authorized two GMO crops for use as food and feed, namely maize MON87427 and NK603xT25. According to theEuropean Parliament’s environment committee, the new GM maize variety NK603xT25 should not have been authorized since it is tolerant to both glufosinate- and glyphosate-based herbicides. The clearance followed favorable scientific assessments by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which stated that glyphosate is unlikely to pose a carcinogenic threat to humans, and confined itself to proposing other toxicological safety thresholds during its review of the maximum residue levels for glyphosate in food. Furthermore, the authorization of Monsanto-developed glyphosate-tolerant GM maize NK603xT25 disregarded the analysis of the International Agency for Research on Cancer – the specialized cancer agency of the World Health Organization – which on March 20, 2015,classified glyphosate as probably carcinogenic to humans.

For further information, please contact the Slow Food International Press Office:

Paola Nano, +39 329 8321285 [email protected]

Slow Food involves over a million of people dedicated to and passionate about good, clean and fair food. This includes chefs, youth, activists, farmers, fishers, experts and academics in over 158 countries; a network of around 100,000 Slow Food members linked to 1,500 local chapters worldwide (known as convivia), contributing through their membership fee, as well as the events and campaigns they organize; and over 2,500 Terra Madre food communities who practice small-scale and sustainable production of quality food around the world.