MUCH controversy later, EU countries
have finally agreed upon rules to allow
the sales of genetically engineered
products. While food companies are
naturally relieved at the outcome, the
Eu decision has sparked off protests
among environmentalists who have
campaigned for long against the import
of such products into the region. Even
Austria and Germany supported the
eco-groups and called for tough rules
as the products could harm human
health.
In a nutshell, the new Eu rules allow
for 'novel' products, as the genetically
engineered products are identified, to
be marketed without any special label.
However, companies will have to label
all 'live' products - those products
which could theoretically grow if put in
soil like tomatoes, potatoes and strawberries. Products containing ingredients which have been genetically engineered and are markedly different from
the conventional products, need to be
labelled. The criterion does not apply to
those products which are 'chemically'
not different from the conventional
food products after processing, in spite
of having engineered ingredients.
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