Biotech Updates

EC: Guaranteeing GMO Safety Is Priority

January 21, 2011

John Dalli, member of the European Commission, responsible for Health and Consumer Policy, said that  guaranteeing the safety of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is a priority. He forwarded this remark during the European Parliament, Alliance for Liberals and Democrats for Europe Seminar on January 12, 2011 in Brussels.

Dalli said that the EC in cooperation with Member States will transform the revised food and feed guidelines being revised by the European Food Safety Authority into a "proposal for a regulation" which will be adopted in the coming months. The guidelines will reinforce the current requirements by:

  • Providing legally binding provisions, adopted with Member States endorsement;
  • Reinforcing scientific aspects by imposing internationally agreed protocols;
  • Specifying the objectives which have to be fulfilled at each stage of the risk assessment; and
  • Establishing a protocol for the comparative analysis for GMOs.

The full speech of John Dalli can be downloaded from http://www.alde.eu/uploads/media/Dalli_speech_at_ALDE_GMO_seminar_12-1-2011_01.pdf.