July 6, 2009

The EU must rethink its stance of GM crop technology to benefit agriculture for food security, as the bloc's GM policy is outdated and inadequate, according to a UK leading plant scientist.

 

No GM technology had received EU approval for cultivation in over a decade, said Tina Barsby, chief executive of the National Institute of Agricultural Botany, in a conference of international agri-investment funds.

 

GM technology is not inherently dangerous, and the EU needs to release the log-jam of production in the pipeline that it is causing and review its outdated and inadequate process-driven regulatory framework, she said.

 

The EU's decision to disallow GM cultivars is holding back western Europe's ability to produce more food to meet population growth and tackle climate change, Barnsby said.

 

Brussels' lack of respect for scientific decision-making is leading to a lack of investment, she said.

 

Barnsby continued by saying it is essential that GM technology is adopted as part of an effort to improve food production or Europe would be left behind in terms of growth.

 

Monsanto predicts corn and soy yields to double by 2030 and that's not just by GM technology alone, she said, adding that the US private sector expects more than 20 transgenes for insect resistance, nitrogen use efficiency and drought tolerance by 2015.