Promote coherence of policies and public information on green biotech

 Farmers are increasingly supporting and growing biotech crops around Europe. One group representing European farmers stated that Europe’s slow adoption …“leaves Europe in a very uncomfortable position compared to its international competitors8”. Most farmers support Agriculture Commissioner Fischer Boel’s statement in 2005 that … “Farmers should be given choice in order to reflect and adapt to the needs of the market. The decision on the use of biotech crops should be for the farmer9.” As the UK National Farmers Union said “… farmers should have access to technologies that have received regulatory approval and should therefore be free to choose their preferred production systems10.”
 
Public opinion is also changing. Recent polling and reports show growing support for agricultural biotech, especially where spraying of crops can be reduced or healthier food choices can be obtained11. Europeans rank biotech at the bottom of the list of all concerns about foods, and a large majority of consumers says that biotech content is not important in purchasing decisions12 .



 Suggested solutions
  
 1. Societal and political leaders need to make a greater contribution towards educating citizens about the technology, its safety, its advantages and the stringent regulatory framework that is in place in Europe.
 
 2. Europe’s political leadership needs to nurture a coherence pro-growth policy that supports sustainable agriculture and is both science-based and non-discriminatory towards proven technologies.
 
 3. Remove the uncertainties in the approvals process which only undermine citizens’ confidence in European institutions and the regulatory framework.


 

8 European Commission, “Plants for the Future”, 2004
9 European Landowners Organisation, “The situation of biotechnologies in European Agriculture”, 2004
10 Commissioner Fischer Boel, as quoted in “Farmers Guardian”, 15 April 2005
11 NFU Statement: “Coexistence of GM crops with conventional/ organic production”, October 2003, June 2006 Eurobarometer on biotechnology
12 Peter Hutton, “GM Foods: What Europeans Really Think”, August 2006
Green Biotechnology Manifesto [Print version] PDF