AgroPages-Portugal to discuss law of GMO‏ ban-Agricultural news

Portugal's National Assembly has recently discussed a legislative bill that aims to ban the planting of genetically-modified organisms in the country. The initiative came from Ecologist Party "The Greens".

The project intends to prohibit the cultivation as well as sales of GMO. Currently, the only genetically-modified product commercialized in Europe is Monsanto's maize MON810. In Portugal, there are only 21,107 acres planted with this variety, which is 6% of the total maize area in the country.

The initiative came after recent change that the European Parliament has allowed member-states to ban GMO products under their borders. Under the old rules, once allowed in a member-state, the variety could be planted in any other European Union nation. Member states could provisionally ban or restrict a GM crop within their territory only if they had new evidence it constituted a risk to human health or the environment, or in the case of an emergency.

Now, during the authorization process, any member-state can simply declare that it does not desire some variety planted in its territory without presenting any justification.

In Portugal, the planted area with genetically-modified maize registered an increase between the year of 2005 and 2011, but was maintained stable around 8k and 9k hectares annually since then.