August 2, 2013

French court rejects ban on Monsanto GM corn

A top French court has rejected a ban on a genetically modified (GM) corn produced by Monsanto, stating that a prohibition is only allowed if the corn "poses a major risk".

France banned MON810 corn in March 2012. However, on July 25, the country's top administrative court has threw out a government ban on the cultivation of the corn by Monsanto.

A moratorium on the MON810 corn -- one of the two types of genetically altered food crops whose cultivation is approved by the EU -- has been in place in France since March 2012.

The Council of State court noted in a statement that the moratorium had little legal basis. It pointed out that EU regulations determine that such a ban "can only be taken by a member state in case of an emergency or if a situation poses a major risk" to the health of people or animals, or to the environment.

However, France's Agriculture Minister, Stephane Le Foll, countered that the government "is not in favour of GM, especially MON810 which is a corn that is resistant to herbicides."

He later announced that the authorities will decide whether to get rid of MON810 before farmers begin sowing on April 2014.

In 1998, Brussels has cleared the use of MON810 for a decade. Monsanto then submitted a request in 2007 for its use to be extended. The process has came to a standstill since then.

In the absence of a formal decision on the renewal request, MON810 is still grown on a small scale, notably in Spain and Portugal which have been more welcoming among other member states.