Save our Seeds

Another round in the approval debate is on the European Union`s menu next week when experts and ministers consider authorising two new GMO maizes. On Monday 19 September, national experts will vote on a European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) recommendation to import and use in food and feed a Monsanto maize. On Tuesday 20 September, agriculture ministers will vote on a different GM maize, produced by Pioneer, for import and use in animal feed.</p><p><a href="http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/32541/story.htm">Reuters: EU to Debate Approving Two New GMO Maizes Next Week</a>

The opposition Social Democrats have announced that they plan to give up their blanket rejection of genetically modified organisms. With the Social Democrat`s change of course, the parliament`s long-standing majority opposition to GMO has dried up.</p><p><a href="http://denmark.dk/portal/page?_pageid=374,610566&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&ic_itemid=866367">Denmark: Soc Dem shift opens door on GMO</a>

Europe`s Agriculture Commissioner, Marianne Fischer-Boel. will wait until at least next April to decide whether to draft rules to tell farmers how to separate traditional, organic and genetically modified crops, she said on Sunday. "We are now following the member states that make legislation on coexistence. There are many different ways of doing it," she said. "We will try and get all these different legislations together to see how it could be solved," Fischer added.</p><p><a href="http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L11521455.htm">Reuters: EU to consider GMO crop-growing laws after April</a>

Monsanto has generally deployed its phalanx of lobbyists on three fronts: shaping regulations that apply to its genetically modified crops; prying open European and other foreign markets for genetically modified foods; and winning legislative battles to tailor the federal agriculture budget critical to its business.</p><p><a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/nation/story/11DD9EA02CA2A2258625707900045E3F?OpenDocument&highlight=2%2C%22monsanto%22">Saint Louis Post:Monsanto lobbies to keep the status quo for gene-altered crops</a>

Ukraine`s Farm Ministry said it would ask the government and the parliament to ban imports and planting of genetically modified soybeans in the country.</p><p><a href="http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/32416/story.htm">Reuters: Ukraine Agriculture Ministry Seeks to Ban GMO Soy Imports</a>

Around 500 ha of GM maize have been grown in the South-West of France with EU approved GMO varieties (Monsanto`s Mon810). As there is no French law on GM growing and co-existence in place yet the growing appears to be legal. The public is taken by surprise.</p><p><a href="http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=scienceNews&storyID=2005-09-06T165944Z_01_MOL661056_RTRIDST_0_SCIENCE-FOOD-FRANCE-GMOS-DC.XML">Science Reuters: French farmers head for gene maize harvest</a></p><p><a href="http://www.lefigaro.fr/sciences/20050906.FIG0248.html?070442">Figaro: OGM : déjss un millier d'hectares en France</a>

Giving his presidential address as head of the British Association for the advancement of Science (BA) at the Festival of Science in Dublin, Professor Robert Winston warned the growing commercialisation of science was threatening its independence and added: "Sometimes the public may be absolutely right that the technology we may create is not to be fully trusted and we need to accept this. New technologies can undoubtedly lead societies into danger, and we need to be more modest in openly accepting these risks."</p><p><a href="http://www.the-ba.net/the-ba/Events/FestivalofScience/FestivalNews/_BAPresidentialAddress2005.htm">BA :Presidential Address 2005</a></p><p><a href="http://www.siliconrepublic.com/news/news.nv?storyid=single5327">Sicilcone Republic: Economic growth may compromise science</a>

Meristem, a french company specialised on GM plants producing pharmaceutical products sees its progression hampered by the anti-GMO spirit. On the nights of July 18 and 19 of this year, 5000 m2 were damaged close to Issoire. Two lots of 3000m2 were destroyed during the night on August 1, and a third field of 3000m2 was destroyed on August 2.</p><p><a href="http://www.checkbiotech.org/blocks/dsp_docToPrint.cfm?doc_id=11149">checkbiotech: Meristem sees its development hampered by anti-GMO activities</a></p><p><a href="http://www.infogm.org/article.php3?id_article=2281">Inf'OGM: List of GM field destructions in France this summer (french)</a>

Martin Taylor, a former bank executive and journalist, has been appointed the new chairman of the world largest agro-chemical and GMO company, Syngenta. Mr Taylor, who was Syngenta`s vize-chairman, said he would focus on expanding the seeds division and would have to cut down other activities such as his role in the Bilderberg group.</p><p><a href="http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article310025.ece">Independent Online Edition > Independent: Taylor becomes chairman of crops group Syngenta</a></p><p><a href="http://www.onlinejournal.com/Special_Reports/052405Estulin/052405estulin.html">Background on the Bilderberg group</a>

The European Commission has authorised the genetically modified oilseed rape GT73 for import and processing as animal feed. The authorisation is complemented by a recommendation to Monsanto on how to deal with accidental spillage if it should occur. 13 member states had voted against the approval, 6 in favour and 6 abstained. In June the Commission had to repeal an initial version of this authorisation for legal reasons.</p><p><a href="http://europa.eu.int/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/05/1077&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en">Press release: GMOs: Commission authorises import of GM-oilseed rape for use in animal feed</a></p><p><a href="http://www.euractiv.com/Article?tcmuri=tcm:29-143619-16&type=News">EurActiv: European Commission approves GT73 amid safety doubts</a></p><p><a href="http://www.saveourseeds.org/dossier/fact_sheet_GT73.htm">Background: SOS Dossier on GT73</a>