New GMO techniques do give rise to GMOs – Austrian govt official

If EU Commission claims that CRISPR-Cas and other new GMO techniques do not produce GMOs, Austria and other member states will oppose that interpretation.

Dietmar Vybiral of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Health said on public radio today that organisms produced through new genetic engineering techniques like CRISPR-Cas must be classified as GMOs.

He confirmed the findings of previous analyses that this was based on the process used to obtain them.

The short interview concludes with an indirect quote from Vybiral saying that, should the Commission claim that CRISPR-Cas and similar new genetic engineering techniques do not produce GMOs, then at least 15 member states, including Austria, would oppose that interpretation.

A massive international lobbying effort is under way by GMO proponents to exempt the products of new GM techniques from GMO regulations and labelling.

These are the key quotes:

“All these new techniques such as CRISPR-Cas etc should be considered to be GMOs, at least according to Austrian law.”

“These processes are definitely genetic engineering processes. They result in a GMO because they are not natural processes.”