The EU Environment Council did not agree on a compromise proposal to amend the EU GMO Directive to provide Member States with the possibility to restrict or prohibit the cultivation of GMOs that have been authorised at EU level in all or part of their territory.
States that opposed adoption of the proposal raised concerns related to, inter alia, the legal compatibility with World Trade Organization (WTO) and EU internal market rules.
9 March 2012: During the first Environment Council under the Danish Presidency, which took place on 9 March 2012, in Brussels, Belgium, EU Member States did not reach agreement on a compromise proposal to amend the EU Directive on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) (directive 2001/18/EC).
The proposal would have allowed EU members to restrict or prohibit the cultivation of GMOs that have been authorized at EU level in all or part of their territory. The compromise proposal, tabled by the Danish EU presidency, contained two options: providing the applicant with the possibility to adjust the geographical scope during the authorization procedure, thus excluding the State or territory concerned; or providing the Member State with the possibility to restrict or prohibit the cultivation of an authorized GMO, provided that the national measure does not conflict with the environmental risk assessment carried out at EU level.
States that opposed adoption of the proposal raised concerns related to: the legal compatibility with World Trade Organization (WTO) and EU internal market rules; and possible overlaps and/or inconsistencies between the mandatory risk assessment at EU level and national environmental measures. [EU Council Conclusions]