New legislation
on gm labelling
Labelling requirements for GMOs in food and feed were agreed by the
Council at the end of November 2002 and on traceability in December
2002. All genetically modified feed will be labelled and current labelling
requirements for genetically modified food will be extended to cover
food in which no dna remains such as highly refined soya and maize
products.
The agreement introduces for the first time strict labelling requirements
of GM-feed along the same principle as for GM food. Currently no labelling
requirements are in place for feed produced from GMOs. The proposal
will require labelling of, for example, GM-soy meal and any compound
feed that includes in its composition the GM-soya meal. It will also
require labelling of corn gluten feed produced from GM maize.
However, food from animals fed on GM feed, eggs, milk and eggs for
example, will not have to be labelled.
When operators, throughout the production and distribution chains,
are handling products that contain GMOs they will have to provide
this information to the next operator in the chain providing for traceability.
Operators will have to list the codes for individual GMOs, in accompanying
documentation, that have been used to constitute the original raw
material for products intended for food, feed and processing.
Threshold for labelling
Under current legislation the presence of GM material in conventional
food does not have to be labelled if it is below 1% and if it can
be shown to be adventitious and technically unavoidable. The Council
agreed on a threshold of no higher than 0.9%.
Under current legislation, there is no tolerance threshold for the
adventitious presence of GM material in food or feed which has not
been authorised. The Commission had proposed a 1% threshold for the
adventitious or technically unavoidable presence of such GM material,
provided that the GM material has received a favourable EU scientific
risk assessment and that the operator can demonstrate that its presence
was technically unavoidable. Above this threshold the product will
not be allowed on the market.
The Council decided to set the threshold at 0.5% and to limit its
application to 3 years. The Commission would however review the operation
of this clause and make a proposal for its extension if appropriate.
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