Time for fresh biotech debate
Biotech firms should refuse to be browbeaten by lobby groups and instead call for a fresh debate on the merits of agricultural biotechnology in Europe, according to the chairman of the International Plant Biotechnology Organisation.
Speaking in Brussels last month, Professor Marc van Montagu said the progress of agricultural biotechnology in Europe had been repeatedly thwarted by a "disfunctional regulatory regime"
His comments came as biotech groups blasted the EU Environment Council for failing to overturn an Austrian ban on two genetically-modified maize seeds which have both been pronounced safe by the European Food Safety Authority.
While European consumers were still very wary of genetically modified (GM) foods, new techniques enabling scientists to develop plants producing healthy fats such as long chain omega-3s or soybeans with zero trans- and saturated fats might change their perceptions, claimed Avril Doyle, Fine Gael Irish MEP and a member of the European Parliament's committee on environment, public health and food safety.
"Why is it that despite the complete lack of scientific basis for their concerns, the majority of European consumers are scared about GM?"
She added: "We're legislating on the basis of popular perception of what the consumer needs and being beaten into line by lobby groups. Our credibility is on the line because we're not making decisions on the basis of sound science."
If the EU ceased to follow its own rules, claimed Simon Barber, director at biotech lobby group EuropaBio, "innovators and investors will be left in a state of profound uncertainty, and that is deeply discouraging for growth and for jobs"
