If France has its say, EU could go for tougher rules for authorizing GMOs in member countries. France recently proposed scrapping  EU's present system and enforcing tougher standards which take into account a wide range of environmental and safety factors. No member state spoke against the proposals.

As per  the French proposals, a multi-discipline and independent assessment would be used to consider proposals for authorising of GMOs. At present the European Food Safety Agency makes  a scientific assessment of the GMO under consideration before it goes to member states who decide whether to allow the new product into the market or not. However, because member states are usually split on authorising GMOs, the decision reverts to the European Union, which in turn usually goes by the opinion of the EFSA's. Under the French plan, food safety concerns would be considered alongside issues such as the farming economy, soil deterioration and effects on other crops.

"To change the expertise does not mean a ban on GMOs; GMOs merit a proper procedure and a real protocol to be placed on the market," said the French minister. Earlier France had banned the cultivation of a GM maize variety produced by the US group Monsanto. Read more...

Contamination with GM rice found in Ghana, Nigeria

Samples of rice on market shelves in three countries,Ghana, Nigeria and Sierra Leone, have tested positive for the presence of GM varieties. Six of the eight rice samples from Nigeria tested positive for the GM-strain while it was found in one out of three samples from Ghana. All the brands tested in Sierra Leone tested negative but  there are fears that illegal rice imports could take GM rice into that country as well. Read more...