The European Commission wants to deregulate the ‘new GMOs’

The European Commission presented its proposal for a law to regulate “new genomic techniques” (NGT). NGT make it possible to modify the genetic material of plants without necessarily introducing a gene from a different species, as is the case with first-generation GMOs.

The Commission distinguishes between two categories of NGT. There are varieties that can be “considered equivalent to conventional plants” – the genetic mutations that have been introduced into them could occur in nature without human intervention, as the EU executive explains. These varieties have no reason to be considered GMOs, and can be deregulated. “In many ways, New Genomic Techniques can give you the same result as through conventional and natural selection or through targeted crossbreeding, but with much more speed, precision, and efficiency,” stressed Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans.

In 2018, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that, from a legislative point of view, all products derived from NGTs must be treated as genetically modified organisms (GMOs), and therefore subject to the strict rules governing their authorization procedure, traceability, labeling and monitoring. Because of this, the development of these crops in the EU has lagged far behind the United States.

Tags: EU, GM