(openPR) - Yesterday the European Parliament adopted a report which allows to ban or restrict the cultivation of GMOs (Genetically Modified Organisms) individually on Member State level.

Reacting to the news, LYMEC President Alexander Plahr commented: "This is a black day for the internal market. In the future the same GMO crops will be allowed in some, but forbidden in other Member States. If any kind of crops has to be forbidden, this should be done on Union level instead and solely based on safety considerations. Allowing Member States to have arbitrary and diverging criteria such as 'to protect agricultural practices on socioeconomic grounds' will fragment the framework conditions for agricultural entrepreneurs in Europe. Either certain genetically modified seeds are safe for consumers and the environment alike in all of Europe, or they are unsafe in all of Europe. This is the only criteria that should be applied."

LYMEC Vice President Mette Lykke Nielsen adds: "This legislation, should it come into force, will lead to vastly different chances for farmers in different Member States. This actually is a step back towards national agricultural policy and the opposite of what should be done. Fragmenting the EU’s agricultural space only hurts us in the upcoming WTO talks vis-à-vis the big agricultural producers, namely China, the US and Brazil."

About LYMEC:

The European Liberal Youth, abbreviated as LYMEC, is a pan-European youth organisation seeking to promote liberal values throughout the EU and particularly through and as the youth organisation of the European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party (ELDR) and its parliamentary group in the European Parliament (ALDE).

LYMEC - European Liberal Youth

Rue Montoyer 31/7
B-1000 Brussels
Belgium (EU)

Tel: +32 2 237 0146
Fax: +32 2 231 1907

Email: office@lymec.eu
Website: www.lymec.eu

Press contact:

Jeroen Diepemaat, LYMEC Press Officer: jeroen@lymec.eu, +31 6 12 909 348 (NL/EN)