BRUSSELS, Feb 11 (Reuters) – European Union ministers hit deadlock on Tuesday on whether to let a new strain of genetically modified (GM) maize be grown on EU soil for human consumption, clearing the way for the bloc’s executive arm to approve the crop automatically.
Although widely grown in the Americas and Asia, GM crops are generally unpopular in Europe, where public opposition is strong and environmentalists have raised concerns about the impact on biodiversity.
On Tuesday, ministers and diplomats from 19 of the 28 EU countries opposed approval, but under the bloc’s weighted voting system, that was not enough to reject the crop.
Read the full, original article: UPDATE 2-EU executive set to back new GM crop, member states divided
