Honey containing pollen from genetically modified maize MON 810 is not marketable. This was announced by the European court of justice today in its groundbreaking verdict. Even tiniest traces of genetically modified (GM) material in food or feeding stuff demand a safety control and a special approval following genetical engineering law. Without an approval, it is illegal to market

such food. With this decision, the German beekeepers‘ association Mellifera e. V. celebrates a big success as it means that bee keepers have a right of compensation if their honey has been contaminated with genetically modified poll that has not been approved as food.

The dispute arose between Mr Bablok, an amateur beekeeper, and Freistaat Bayern (State of Bavaria, Germany), which owns a number of plots of land on which MON 810 maize has been cultivated for research purposes in recent years. In 2005 MON 810 maize DNA and genetically modified proteins were detected in the maize pollen harvested by Mr Bablok in beehives situated 500 metres from the plots of land belonging to Freistaat Bayern. Very small amounts of MON 810 maize DNA were also detected in a number of samples of Mr Bablok's honey. As German authorities held that such contaminations have to be tolerated, Mr Bablok, together with the help of Mellifera e.V., brought legal proceedings against Freistaat Bayern before the German courts and claimed for the damage.

Due to unsettled questions of European law, the Bavarian Higher Administrative Court presented a few decision points to the European Court of Justice in 2009. Today, the court decided in favour of the bee keepers and consumers who predominantly disapprove of genetically engineered organisms in their food. On the occasion of the judgement, the environmental organisation BUND (friends of the earth germany) requests the German government to regulate the protection of honey in the genetical engineering law.