On 8 July 2016, EU member states will discuss whether or not to approve genetically engineered maize 1507 and Bt11 for cultivation and the re-authorisation of GM maize Mon810 (http://ec.europa.eu/food/plant/docs/sc_modif-genet_20160708_agenda.pdf). All three maize events are producing insecticidal Bt toxins.

However, in the light of new evidence, it has to be concluded that authorisation for the cultivation of genetically engineered maize cannot be issued: As the EU Commission admitted just recently there is an outbreak of teosinte in Spain (http://redandaluzadesemillas.org/IMG/pdf/160607_respuesta_ce_x_carta_conjunta_teosinte.pdf).

This has huge legal, economic and ecological consequences: In 1998, when the cultivation of MON810 was allowed in the EU for the first time, the precondition was that there were no wild relatives to which the transgenes could spread. However, this circumstance changed in 2009 when teosinte was found to be growing in Spanish maize fields as a new alien species. Since then, no effective measures could be identified to prevent teosinte from spreading further. Teosinte is a wild relative of maize and native to Mexico. Crossings between teosinte and maize can enable transgenes from genetically engineered maize to spread and persist in the environment. Once gene flow has occurred it can be very difficult and very costly to remove the plants and control the damage in the environment and for farmers. (www.testbiotech.org/en/node/1676).