GMOs

EPHA Report from the EFSA Stakeholder Consultative Platform - November 2011

A meeting of the EFSA Stakeholder Consultative Platform took place on the 17th and 18th of November 2011. EPHA attended the two-day meeting and summarises below some of its key outcomes. The broad range of participants that attented this two-day meeting allowed a rich exchange on a variety of items: the recent organisation’s developments (EFSA’s involvement in the Escherichiacoli STEC 0104:H4 pandemic, work on Bisphenol A, Aspartame etc.) the draft Science Strategy for (...)

European Commission report on socio-economic aspects of GMO cultivation in Europe

The European Commission report on the socio-economic implicatoin of GMO cultivation reveals that the existing information is often statistically limited. Background In December 2008, the Environmental Council of Ministers requested the European Commission to collect and exchange relevant information on socio-economic implications of cultivation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) along the food chain in the European Union. Key findings The experience with GMO cultivation in Europe (...)

MEPs want EU countries to be able to ban GMOs on environmental grounds

After MEPs from the Environment Committee, at the plenary sitting in Strasbourg (5 July 2011) all MEPs agree to give Member States a choice of whether to ban or restrict GMO (Genetically Modified Organisms) crops on their territory, adding environmental impacts to a European Commission’s list of grounds on which restrictions could be introduced. The European Commission issued in July 2010 a proposal for a regulation to revise the the current framework regarding the cultivation of (...)

How do Europeans perceive food risks?

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) surveyed consumers across Europe to know more about their perception of food-related risks and their confidence in public authorities dealing with such problems. Do EU citizens have less confidence in national or EU authorities’ power to protect them since the last survey in 2005? Are EU citizens afraid of what they eat? Please find below the results of the Eurobarometer survey published in November 2010. Since the last study on (...)

One million signatures call for a stop to GM crops

A petition for a Europe free of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) has hit the one million signatures threshold and has handed to the European Commission. The petition is the first to be presented under the ’European Citizens’ Initiative’, a principle enshrined in the EU’s Lisbon Treaty since December 2009. In March, the European Commission approved the first genetically-modified potato, Amflora, to be cultivated in the EU – the Union’s first GM (...)

Member States are free to decide on the cultivation of genetically modified crops

Following political guidelines given by European Commission President Barroso in September 2009 and the subsequent commitment made by European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Policy John Dalli, a European authorisation system has been proposed in addition to the freedom of Member States to cultivate genetically modified organisms. On 13 July 2010, the European Commission published a Communication to the European Parliament, the Council, the Economic and Social Committee and the (...)

Give your opinion on EFSA’s communications strategy

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has launched a consultation on its communications strategy. Dating from 2006, the current strategy needs to be reviewed to face new challenges. The deadline for contribution is the 5 July 2010. The role of EFSA to assess all risks associated with the food chain makes its communication to the public a key challenge. Information ensures that citizens are aware of the risks they might encounter and it allows them to adapt their behaviours. Its (...)

Dalli presents EC 2010 Work Programme

On 4 May 2010, European Commissioner for Health and Consumer Affairs John Dalli presented the European Commission`s 2010 Work Programme to the European Parliament’s ENVI Committee. On 4 May 2010, Health and Consumer Affairs Commissioner John Dalli presented the European Commission`s 2010 Work Programme to the European Parliament’s Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI). In this exchange of views, Members of Parliament were able to ask about the (...)

Health: questioning expertise deficient evaluation and conflicts of interest

In March 2010, the ALDE group held a seminar about industry’s influence on health decisions. The Corporate Europe Observatory has released a report on this seminar that provides a summary of the speakers’ contributions. ALDE MEPs Corinne Lepage (France), Frédérique Ries (France), and Fiona Hall (UK) co-organised a seminar, "Health: questioning expertise deficient evaluation and conflicts of interest" wiith CRIIGEN, Foundation of Citizen Science and ENSSER on 4 March 2010. (...)

Meeting Report from EFSA-EPHA Bilateral Meeting- 13 April 2010

On 13 April 2010, EPHA welcomed a delegation from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) for a bilateral meeting in advance of the EFSA Stakeholder Consultative Platform. The topics addressed included the areas of work for EFSA in the field of nutrition, and new technologies and new methods for engaging with stakeholders. The possibility to organise further bilateral meetings in the context of EPHA’s membership of the Stakeholder Consultative Platform was discussed. Please find a (...)