EU discussions on GM crops

European politicians, senior civil servants and leading experts from the worlds of academia, commerce and NGOs gathered in Vienna on 4, 5 and 6 April to discuss future policies on the co-existence of GM crops with conventional and organic agriculture. The conference formed part of the Commission's consultations with interested parties on the development of efficient and cost-effective strategies to ensure co-existence. It followed the adoption on 9 March of a report on the progress EU Member States have made so far in implementing national rules. The report concluded that the development of EU-wide legislation on co-existence is not justified at this time, in view of the EU's limited experience with the cultivation of GM crops and the need to conclude the process of introducing national measures. However, the Commission is keen to hear the views of all stakeholders before drawing any final conclusions. Three workshops discussed different national and regional approaches to co-existence, technical and economic aspects of segregation and consumer attitudes and market responses to GMOs.