German Retailers Association BVLH calls for regulation and detection methods for new genetic engineering

The National Association of German Food Retailers (Bundesverband des Deutschen Lebensmittelhandels - BVLH) has now commented even twice on the subject of new genetic engineering: it is calling on the upcoming German government to focus vigorously on detection procedures. In view of the recently presented report of the EU Commission, it is clearly against deregulation.

3:3 on genetic engineering in "Bundestag" election manifestos

Genetic engineering is a topic in all the manifestos of the parties represented in the German Parliament [Bundestag] - mostly by exact term, sometimes also slightly veiled. Three of them are against genetic engineering on fields and plates and support regulating new technologies such as CRISPR, while three more or less clearly support its use and deregulation.

Aldi Initiative: more animal welfare also means less genetic engineering

Aldi has announced that by 2030 it will only offer fresh meat from husbandry categories 3 and 4. In addition to better husbandry, more space and outdoor exercise, this also means more "Ohne Gentechnik“ [Non-GMO]. This is because only non-GMO feed is allowed from husbandry category 3 and up. REWE and Edeka have announced that they will follow Aldi's example.

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What are we committed to?

Deregulation threatens “Ohne Gentechnik”

The “Ohne Gentechnik” segment of the agriculture, processing, trading and marketing industries is booming in many European countries. But products made with new genetic engineering methods pose a massive economic threat to that segment. Consistent with the European Court of Justice (ECJ)’s ruling, the “Ohne Gentechnik” business sector advocates that all products made with the new genetic engineering methods be regulated as “genetically engineered”. Germany’s VLOG and Austria’s ARGE Gentechnik-frei made this clear in the EU Commission’s stakeholder survey in the spring of 2020. A summary of our responses can be found in this document.

“Gene editing” detection method

Genetic engineering is genetic engineering and always will be. In the EU, the same statutory rules apply to plants produced with the new genetic engineering methods, such as gene editing (including CRISPR, TALEN and ODM), as to all other genetically engineered plants. The European Court of Justice made this clear in 2018. Therefore, methods for detecting gene-edited plants are urgently needed. VLOG and other associations have sponsored the development of such a method and are campaigning for its use in government GMO monitoring.

New seal users & members

Thomas Niederreuther GmbH

Alltech Denmark ApS

A-Ware Packaging B.V.

Bavaria-Ei GmbH & Co. KG

Dawtona sp. z o.o.

Ziegler Käsespezialitäten GmbH

Anzenberger Fleischhandel GmbH

“‘Ohne GenTechnik’ labelling was one of the most important projects in my tenure as Federal Minister of Agriculture. I am therefore pleased with its success story, which benefits so many farmers and processors. Those who wish to make well-informed shopping decisions need reliable information. This also applies to new genetic engineering methods and the products made with them”.

Ilse Aigner, President, Bavarian State Parliament, 2018

“Consumers want to know what is in their food and how that food is made. The vast majority do not want GMOs in the fields or on their plates. The ‘Ohne GenTechnik’ seal creates the necessary transparency for a confident shopping choice”.

Klaus Müller, Board, Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband (vzbv), 2020

“I am fighting so that one day we will not need this seal anymore – because everything is non-GMO. The VLOG and its widely used seal help create and strengthen public awareness of this goal”.

Sarah Wiener, chef, entrepreneur, author and Member of the European Parliament, 2020

“The ‘Ohne GenTechnik’ seal enables people to protect the environment on an international scale while shopping: The logo on milk, eggs and meat shows consumers that no genetically modified plants, e.g., from South America, have wound up in the animals’ feeding troughs. CRISPR genetic engineering must certainly be regulated and labelled so the seal can continue to guarantee freedom of choice”.

Prof. Dr. Hubert Weiger, Honorary Chairman, Friends of the Earth Germany (BUND), 2020

“The REWE Group has been a member of VLOG since 2012. It is important for us that our products are clearly labelled so our customers can make well-informed choices. It is also part of our quality standard that the soy feed used in our own brand products must be GMO-free. We rely on the VLOG Standard to ensure this”.

Dr. Daniela Büchel, Divisional Management, Board, REWE Group, 2020

“The VLOG Standard provides us with a practical framework for ensuring that feed production is GMO-free. I contribute my company’s experience in ‘Ohne Gentechnik’ compound feed production to the VLOG expert group and actively collaborate in the further development of the VLOG Standard”.