Articles

The GE campaign has launched a new website (in English), providing information and feedback on the situation in Iceland.</p><p><a href="http://www.erfdabreytt.net/main.asp">Campaign Website</a></p><p><a href="http://www.erfdabreytt.net/en_default2.asp?strAction=getPublication&intPublId=195">GMOs in Iceland - The Present State of Affairs</a>

The Irish Minister for Agriculture and Food, Mary Coughlan T.D., announced the publishing of the 'Report on Coexistence of GM and non-GM Crops in Ireland' and invites observations from interested parties. The report is available on the Department's website.</p><p><a href="http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/index.jsp?file=pressrel/2005/239-2005.xml">Department of Agriculture and Food</a></p><p><a href="http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/index.jsp?file=publicat/publications2005/gm_coexistence/index.xml">Report: Coexistence of GM and non-GM Crops in Ireland</a>

EU environment ministers failed to agree on another GMO approval at their meeting on 2 December in Brussels. 14 countries voted against licensing the import of Monsantos Mon 863 x Mon 810 hybrid, missing however the required qualified majority for rejecting the Commissions proposal to approve the GMO. 8 countries voted in favour and 3 abstained. Ministers also discussed the next steps on the Communities general policy on GMO approvals. Pro GM Commissioners and EU governments seem to put their hope on a pending WTO ruling against the EU, expected in January 2006.</p><p><a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000082&sid=aZeRr993zHGw&refer=canada">Bloomberg: EU Ministers Fail to Agree on Monsanto Modified Corn</a></p><p><a href="http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/33790/story.htm">Reuters: EU Eyes WTO Case to Drive Policy Forward on GMOs</a></p><p><a href="http://www.euractiv.com/Article?tcmuri=tcm:29-150355-16&type=News">EurActive: Loophole clears way for GM maize approval</a></p><p><a href="http://europa.eu.int/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=MEMO/05/462&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en">EU Press Release</a></p><p><a href="http://www.saveourseeds.org/downloads/GP_NextStepsBriefing0512.pdf">Greenpeace briefing on key issues on the Ministers agenda</a>

In a press release Friends of the Earth Europe is calling on EU Environment Ministers to allow Europeans to ban GM foods and crops, similar to the example of Switzerland. Because virtually no-one in the EU wants GM food, and EU Ministers should give Regions and citizens the right to ban these foods.</p><p><a href="http://www.foeeurope.org/press/2005/HH_01_Dec_GMOs.htm">Friends of the Earth: Give us the right to ban GM foods</a>

In line with a conference in Rennes the members of the GM-free Network have endorsed a declaration which expresses their ambitions and demands to EU authorities. The declaration also outlines further actions and prospects for the future.</p><p>Declaration of Rennes<a href="http://www.keine-gentechnik.de/bibliothek/zonen/positionen/gmo_network_declaration_rennes_en_051130.pdf"> en</a></p><p><a href="http://www.keine-gentechnik.de/bibliothek/zonen/positionen/gmo_network_declaration_rennes_fr_051130.pdf">fr</a></p><p><a href="http://www.keine-gentechnik.de/bibliothek/zonen/positionen/gmo_network_declaration_rennes_dt_051130.pdf">dt</a>

Austria is planning to hold a pan-European debate about genetically-modified farming, following strong Swiss support for a five-year ban on gene technology in a referendum on November 27.Vienna will take over the EU's six-month rotating presidency in January and aims to host a conference about GM crops on 4-5 April, the country's agriculture minister Josef Proell has announced.</p><p><a href="http://euobserver.com/9/20431">EU Observer</a>

Switzerland voted in favor of a five-year ban on the farming of genetically modified plants and animals on Sunday, putting in place some of the toughest restrictions in Europe. Official results showed that 55.7 percent of voters accepted the proposal to impose a five-year moratorium.</p><p><a href="http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticleSearch.aspx?storyID=110259+27-Nov-2005+RTRS&srch=swiss+GMO"> Reuters</a></p><p><a href="http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=111&sid=6271553&cKey=1133121023000&rss=true">Swiss Info: Swiss consumers side with GM opponents</a></p><p><a href="http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/11/27/news/swiss.php">International Herald Tribune: Swiss back ban on modified crops</a>

The EU Commission has authorised a Danish law which provides for compensation of farmers for their financial losses, if their crops have been contaminated with GMOs. The compensation would come from a fund, which is financed by farmers cultivating GM crops.</p><p><a href="http://europa.eu.int/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/05/1458&forma">EU: Commission authorises Danish state aid to compensate for losses due to presence of GMOs in conventional and organic crops</a>

Renessen, an animal feed joint venture of Monsanto and commodity giant Cargill has announced its first product for 2007/2008: Maize with high lysine content to replace additives in industrial animal production. However, the company, so far having lost 445 mio US $ still faces considerable challenges.</p><p><a href="http://www.dailyitem.com/archive/2005/1115/biz/stories/02biz.htm">Business News: Corn genetically engineered for animal feed to be marketed</a>

The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) has announced the stop of 10 years of research into genetically modified peas because they caused lung inflammation in mice. The peas were designed to kill the pea weevil - Bruchus pisorum - by introduction of a bean gene to block alpha-amylase, an enzyme important for digestion of starch. Weevil larvae feeding on the pea seed are unable to digest the starch and starve. While the gene product does not cause any immune reactions in beans it obviously did in the peas. The researchers suspect the subtle change with massive consequences to be caused by a process called glycosylation, which plays a major role in protein folding. The GM peas were also resistant to Bayer's herbicide "Basta".</p><p><a href="http://www.forbes.com/technology/feeds/afx/2005/11/17/afx2345014.html">AFX News:Australian researchers scrap GM peas after mice fall ill</a></p><p><a href="http://www.csiro.au/index.asp?id=212GM&type=mediaRelease">CSIRO press release</a>