European Commission trumps ministers' indecision by deciding to allow modified 1507 strain for use in animal feed.
In September, European farm ministers were deadlocked on a decision to approve a type of biotech corn for use in animal feed. Thursday the European Commission authorized the import since the ministers were unable to reach a decision.
The corn event, Pioneer's 1507 strain, has the Roundup Ready and European corn borer protection traits included in the seed. The maize type is only approved for use in animal feed; an authorization for use as food is still under examination.
EU farm ministers last month failed to agree on whether to approve or reject MON 863, a type of maize resistant to the corn-border worm made by U.S. biotech company Monsanto. Ministers also failed to decide on GA 21, a herbicide-resistant maize, also by Monsanto.
The European Commission fears France and Germany actions to prevent imports of biotech crops are illegal in the World Trade Organization arena. The United States has brought a case against the EU for its memorandum on biotech crops. The WTO was due to issue a preliminary ruling in August, but it was forced to delay the report until early October because of the volume of information involved. Now, a final ruling is not expected until January.
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