Brussels, September 2023 – On 5 July 2023, the European Commission released a plan to scrap most safety rules governing the production and sale of a new brand of genetically modified (GM) plants produced with new genomic techniques, or NGTs. If adopted, the legislative proposal would seriously weaken or entirely remove safety checks and labelling requirements, based on unproven claims by biotech companies.

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) produced with these new techniques are currently governed by existing EU legislation, which includes safety measures, such as an evaluation of risks to human health and the environment, monitoring for possible adverse effects after release into the environment and the food chain, and labelling (if GM products are intended to be sold directly on the EU market).