Romania Spurns Trend Towards Banning GM Crops

Romania has decided to join a minority of EU countries that will allow the growth of genetically modified crops.

New EU rules permit the cultivation of GM crops if they are deemed "healthy and safe".

The law, adopted in March, cleared the way for new GM crops to be approved after years of deadlock.

But it also gave individual countries the right to opt out and ban GM crops whether or not the European Commission approved them as safe.

Nineteen of the EU's 28 member states had applied to keep GM crops out of all or part of their territories by a deadline on Sunday.

This was the final date for EU states to opt out of the new European legislation.

Denmark, Luxembourg, Malta and Slovenia were the last to apply for a ban on October 3.

Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, The Netherlands and Poland did do earlier.

Britain is seeking a ban on behalf of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, but not for England. Belgium has opted to keep the Wallonia region GM-free. Germany has also opted for a partial ban.

Before it joined the EU in 2007, Romania grew GM crops on a larger scale than any other European country.

After, the situation changed significantly, as the country altered its legislation to fit EU rules. But there is a strong pressure from both farmers and big agricultural multinationals to re-introduce GM soy, for example, on the grounds that its cultivation has proven advantages for agriculture and the economy.

Agriculture Minister Daniel Constantin said on Monday that Romania has no interest in opting out of the European law on GM crops.

"We only cultivate one type of genetically modified maize, on a very small surface, which has been...