SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
(SIPA/Durand Florence)
'Non!': France Bans Monsanto's Genetically Modified Corn
French PM said decision was "to protect the environment"
Mar 16, 2012
France has announced today that it is imposing a new temporary ban on Monsanto's MON810 maize in the interests of protecting the environment.
The announcement comes from French Agricultural Minister Bruno Le Maire who said the decision was a "precautionary measure."
The move restates a 2008 ban, which was overturned by the country's highest court in November.
Last month France asked the European regulators to suspend the authorization to plant Monsanto's genetically modified MON810 corn saying the decision was based on studies showing GM crops "pose significant risks for the environment."
* * *
According to the official statement from the government on the ban of the cultivation of MON810, the Minister of Agriculture decided to take the conservative measure on the temporary ban of maize MON810 today due to the closeness of the sowing season in order to protect the environment.
* * *
Agence France-Presse reports:
France bans strain of Monsanto GM maize
[...] France's top administrative court in November overturned a government order banning French farmers from planting genetically modified crops from Monsanto. [...]
France's agriculture ministry imposed a ban in February 2008 amid concerns over public safety, but the French State Council said the government had failed to prove that Monsanto crops "present a particularly elevated level of risk to either human health or the environment". [...]
"If the European Union does not act, we can invoke the safeguard clause" which allows EU nations to independently restrict or prohibit the sales of products, the French agricultural ministry said.
* * *
Reuters adds:
France restores ban on GMO maize crops
[...] The government had immediately said it would "examine all ways" to maintain it despite the decision.
The decree banning MON810 was due to be published on Sunday, likely in time to prevent sowings as maize plantings are only starting in France. Farmers also expressed fears of having their fields ransacked by anti-GMO activists like in 2007, the year before the previous ban.
France, which holds a presidential election next month and where public opinion is fiercely opposed to genetically modified organisms (GMO), had asked the European Commission last month to suspend the authorisation to sow the maize (corn), the only GMO crop allowed for cultivation in the European Union.
The French government's request to the EU Commission was based on "significant risks for the environment" shown in recent scientific studies, it said.
With maize sowing getting underway in France, anti-GMOs had called on the government to act quickly, concerned that farmers may sow the plants sometimes dubbed as "Frankenstein foods".
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
France has announced today that it is imposing a new temporary ban on Monsanto's MON810 maize in the interests of protecting the environment.
The announcement comes from French Agricultural Minister Bruno Le Maire who said the decision was a "precautionary measure."
The move restates a 2008 ban, which was overturned by the country's highest court in November.
Last month France asked the European regulators to suspend the authorization to plant Monsanto's genetically modified MON810 corn saying the decision was based on studies showing GM crops "pose significant risks for the environment."
* * *
According to the official statement from the government on the ban of the cultivation of MON810, the Minister of Agriculture decided to take the conservative measure on the temporary ban of maize MON810 today due to the closeness of the sowing season in order to protect the environment.
* * *
Agence France-Presse reports:
France bans strain of Monsanto GM maize
[...] France's top administrative court in November overturned a government order banning French farmers from planting genetically modified crops from Monsanto. [...]
France's agriculture ministry imposed a ban in February 2008 amid concerns over public safety, but the French State Council said the government had failed to prove that Monsanto crops "present a particularly elevated level of risk to either human health or the environment". [...]
"If the European Union does not act, we can invoke the safeguard clause" which allows EU nations to independently restrict or prohibit the sales of products, the French agricultural ministry said.
* * *
Reuters adds:
France restores ban on GMO maize crops
[...] The government had immediately said it would "examine all ways" to maintain it despite the decision.
The decree banning MON810 was due to be published on Sunday, likely in time to prevent sowings as maize plantings are only starting in France. Farmers also expressed fears of having their fields ransacked by anti-GMO activists like in 2007, the year before the previous ban.
France, which holds a presidential election next month and where public opinion is fiercely opposed to genetically modified organisms (GMO), had asked the European Commission last month to suspend the authorisation to sow the maize (corn), the only GMO crop allowed for cultivation in the European Union.
The French government's request to the EU Commission was based on "significant risks for the environment" shown in recent scientific studies, it said.
With maize sowing getting underway in France, anti-GMOs had called on the government to act quickly, concerned that farmers may sow the plants sometimes dubbed as "Frankenstein foods".
France has announced today that it is imposing a new temporary ban on Monsanto's MON810 maize in the interests of protecting the environment.
The announcement comes from French Agricultural Minister Bruno Le Maire who said the decision was a "precautionary measure."
The move restates a 2008 ban, which was overturned by the country's highest court in November.
Last month France asked the European regulators to suspend the authorization to plant Monsanto's genetically modified MON810 corn saying the decision was based on studies showing GM crops "pose significant risks for the environment."
* * *
According to the official statement from the government on the ban of the cultivation of MON810, the Minister of Agriculture decided to take the conservative measure on the temporary ban of maize MON810 today due to the closeness of the sowing season in order to protect the environment.
* * *
Agence France-Presse reports:
France bans strain of Monsanto GM maize
[...] France's top administrative court in November overturned a government order banning French farmers from planting genetically modified crops from Monsanto. [...]
France's agriculture ministry imposed a ban in February 2008 amid concerns over public safety, but the French State Council said the government had failed to prove that Monsanto crops "present a particularly elevated level of risk to either human health or the environment". [...]
"If the European Union does not act, we can invoke the safeguard clause" which allows EU nations to independently restrict or prohibit the sales of products, the French agricultural ministry said.
* * *
Reuters adds:
France restores ban on GMO maize crops
[...] The government had immediately said it would "examine all ways" to maintain it despite the decision.
The decree banning MON810 was due to be published on Sunday, likely in time to prevent sowings as maize plantings are only starting in France. Farmers also expressed fears of having their fields ransacked by anti-GMO activists like in 2007, the year before the previous ban.
France, which holds a presidential election next month and where public opinion is fiercely opposed to genetically modified organisms (GMO), had asked the European Commission last month to suspend the authorisation to sow the maize (corn), the only GMO crop allowed for cultivation in the European Union.
The French government's request to the EU Commission was based on "significant risks for the environment" shown in recent scientific studies, it said.
With maize sowing getting underway in France, anti-GMOs had called on the government to act quickly, concerned that farmers may sow the plants sometimes dubbed as "Frankenstein foods".
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.