Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003 as regards the possibility for the Member States to restrict or prohibit the use of genetically modified food and feed on their territory

Since the entry into force of Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003, there has never been a qualified majority amongst Member States in favour of or against a draft Commission Decision authorising Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) and Genetically Modified (GM) food and feed. The result has always been a “no opinion” for all stages of the procedure (Standing Committee and Appeal Committee under currently applicable rules, or the Council in the past). As a result, the authorisation decisions have been adopted by the Commission, in accordance with applicable legislation, without the support of the Member States’ committee opinion.

The return of the dossier to the Commission for final decision, very much the exception for the procedure as a whole, has become the norm for decision-making on GM food and feed authorisations. Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003 allows Member States to adopt measures restricting or prohibiting the use of authorised GMOs and GM food and feed only if they are able to demonstrate that the product in question is likely to pose risks to health and to the environment. The reasons why Member States vote against are diverse. They often express national concerns which do not only relate to issues associated with the safety of GMOs for health or the environment.

The European Commission was appointed on the basis of a set of Political Guidelines presented to the European Parliament. In these Guidelines, a commitment was taken to review the legislation applicable to the authorisation of GMOs. The results are set out in the Communication reviewing the decision-making process on Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs).

The Commission concludes that the legal framework for decision-making on GM food and feed needs to be adapted. The Commission therefore proposes to extend the solution agreed in Directive (EU) 2015/412 by the European Parliament and by the Council on GMO cultivation to GM food and feed in respect of democratic choice and in the interest of consistency.

See also Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions - Reviewing the decision-making process on genetically modified organisms (GMOs)

• Primary Source

EUR-Lex: COM(2015)177: Follow the progress of this proposal through the decision-making procedure http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/HIS/?uri=COM:2015:177:FIN

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