The current EU GMO-legislation, based on late 1990s understanding of biotechnology, would leave Europe without access to current and future gene-edited crops, including existing ones like fortified tomatoes, soybeans with healthier fatty acid profiles, and nitrogen-fixing bacteria for fertilising agricultural soil…. But things could soon change.
Unfortunately, suggested new legislation of Novel Genomic Techniques (NGTs) is opposed by organic operators on the grounds that it would threaten “their freedom to conduct business.”
It seems backwards that organic actors should oppose more environmentally friendly farming methods on business grounds, or that the prospect of resource-saving and nutritional benefits would be considered a threat in the first place.
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If we are to ensure the future of the most vulnerable biodiversity on our own continent and the world at large, we need to shrink our land footprint and provide more food with less resources. Young researchers in European universities today are eager to develop plant varieties that can help, but they are concerned that their work may never see the light of day if the EU does not change its prohibitive legislation. It’s high time to #GiveGenesAChance.
