Genetic engineering: better no law than a bad law

Berlin, 19.05.2017. On the failure of negotiations between the SPD and the Union on a new genetic engineering law, Felix Prinz zu Löwenstein, chairman of the organic umbrella organization for organic food industry (BÖLW) explains:

"It is a success of the civil society that no gene technology has been cultivated in Germany for many years. The environment, but also farmers and the quality-oriented food industry, benefit from this. If the draft law of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology, Schmidt, failed for a new law on genetic engineering in parliament, it is not surprising. Finally, Schmidt not only wanted to make prohibitions on cultivation prohibitive by means of complicated rules of coordination, but by law also introduced novel genetic engineering constructs before the EU had assessed them legally. Schmidt's draft was also opposed to a unanimously adopted draft law by the federal states.

The Bundestag failed to resolve the deficits of the draft. Therefore the decision of the SPD Group is correct to restart the legislative process after the election. The next federal government is responsible for delivering a law that protects the freedom from genetic engineering in the field and thus protects consumers from risks and expensive food - as EU law allows.

The 40.000 organic farmers and organic food producers in Germany are legally obliged not to use genetic engineering. By a lack of liability for the cause of the disease, the costs of genetic engineering, which they do not want to eat at all, have to be met. "

Further information: http://www.boelw.de