European Union has new division on GMOs

A severe drought in Europe last year damaged harvests and affected food production across Europe. So the European Union is considering new rules for genetically modified crops in response to spoilage.

Some argue that deregulation of genetic modification techniques could lead to better harvests, while others believe it would be a distraction from the need for radical changes in agricultural practices.

Proponents of gene editing techniques say they produce crops that are more resistant to drought and disease and require less water.

The European Commission plans to propose a law in July that will relax rules on plants produced using certain new genomic techniques. The proposal is expected to create a debate among EU member states and lawmakers. The new techniques involve genome editing tools that alter a plant's genetic makeup without adding foreign genetic material, unlike transgenic GMOs. The European Commission argues that current rules on GMOs are inadequate to regulate the new technology.

France supports changing the rules, while Austria, Cyprus, Germany, Hungary and Luxembourg are more cautious and call for comprehensive risk assessments. European agricultural lobby group Copa-Cogeca supports the new rules.

Most EU lawmakers support relaxing the rules, with the conservative European People's Party opposing mandatory targets for cutting pesticides but favoring rules for the new technology.

Left-wing parties in the EU parliament resist specific laws for new genomic techniques, arguing that they are already covered by existing rules on GMOs.

The next battle over the bill will likely focus on safeguards, with the Greens defending risk assessments, detection and traceability methods, and mandatory labeling. Critics argue that the labeling would discourage consumers who prefer GMO-free foods and that the proposal is a distraction from the necessary shift toward a sustainable agricultural system.