Italy Joins Opposition to GMO Maize

["Greenbase" <greenbas@gb.greenpeace.org>]

ITALY JOINS OPPOSITION TO GMO MAIZE

Brussels--07 march 1997--Greenpeace today welcomed the decision
of the Italian government to challenge the European Commission
by using its legal rights under EU law to ban the cultivation of
genetically engineered maize.  

The Italian Ministry of Health confirmed to Greenpeace today
that it has informed its European partners of its decision, thus
becoming the third EU Member State to invoke  emergency powers
to contest a European Commission ruling.   In December last year
the Commissioners bowed to US pressure and made their
controversial decision to allow the cultivation and import of
Ciba-Geigy's `Bt' maize, even though 13 of the 15 Member States
had opposed such a move.   


Article 16 of the EU directive which governs the release of
genetically engineered organisms - Council Directive 90/220/EEC
-
gives Member states the right to effectively veto a Commission
decision to allow a product, if they think it "constitutes a
risk to human health or the environment".   Austria and
Luxembourg took the unprecedented step of using Article 16 in
early February.   A week later the French government, which had
originally proposed the maize to its European partners,  decided
that it should not be grown commercially in France.

"The USA and the Commission tried to bully Member States into
acceptance of  this experimental crop, and it did not work" said
Louise Gale of Greenpeace's European Unit.  "States which have
examined the evidence realise that there are environmental
dangers associated with Ciba-Geigy's new strain. All the
Commission has done with its heavy-handedness is to decrease
public confidence in the EU decision-making process.  We
congratulate Italy on standing up for their rights and for
protecting the environment and urge other Member States to
follow suit."


                                                         ENDS


For further information please contact 
Louise Gale at the Greenpeace European Unit +32 2 2801400
Peter Morris at Greenpeace International         +31 20 5249529

Editors note:
France and Italy produced about 65% of the 33 million tons of
the EU maize crop in 1996.   The EU imports about 2 million tons
from the USA.