While there is still a broad consensus against transgenic biotechnologies, new genomic techniques (NGT) are today arousing many positive opinions among the Member States of the European Union, the last informal meeting of Ministers of ‘Agriculture held last September seems to indicate.
During the informal meeting of Ministers of Agriculture which took place on September 16 in Prague, the subject of new genomic techniques (NGT) was once again on the menu of the day, with a rather favorable reception. Thus, upon his arrival, the French Minister for Agriculture Marc Fesneau recalled that “the French position is clear: since they [NGT] make it possible to ensure the agro-ecological transition, to deal with climate change, it is a way that needs to be explored”.
A source present at the meeting told pan- European media network Euractiv that other agriculture ministers had also expressed support for the technology, including those from Sweden, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Malta, Ireland, Italy, Hungary, Romania and Belgium.
These winds favorable to the NGT deeply worry the European environmental nebula.
Thus, on September 29 of this year, the European parliamentary group Les Verts/ALE published a report entitled Behind The Smokescreen, written by Claire Robinson (GM Watch) with the help of Inf’OGM, denouncing certain European scientists… In short, once again, the anti-GMOs are shaking the bogeyman of the “lobby.”
[Editor’s note: This article has been translated from French and edited for clarity.]
