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Hungary opens the debate on genetic engineering deregulation
Hungarian Minister of Agriculture István Nagy, Photo: Facebook/István Nagy
Concerns that have not yet been adequately addressed should be resolved
Hungary, which holds the Council Presidency from 1 July until the end of 2024, and is critical of genetic engineering, is reopening the deregulation debate. The Non-Paper, which was sent to the participants of the "Genetic Resources and Innovation in Agriculture" working group in preparation for the first meeting, lists ten contentious issues. The chairman of the working group explains in the cover letter that several "elements of the draft" still need to be discussed further, as there has not yet been enough time for adequate discussion and finding solutions. Despite intensive efforts, the Council presidencies of Spain and Belgium did not succeed in reorganising genetic engineering legislation. Many concerns of Member States were not taken into account in this fast-track procedure pushed by the Council presidencies. This is now set to change under the Hungarian Presidency.
VLOG Managing Director Alexander Hissting welcomes the Hungarian initiative: "The Hungarian contribution to the discussion could be a game changer in the debate on the impending GMO deregulation in the Council of Ministers. At last, all the relevant concerns, that were previously deliberately kept under wraps in order to wave through the deregulation of new genetic engineering as quickly as possible, are coming to the table. Fortunately, this strategy has now been thwarted."
Risk assessment, labelling and detection methods are up for debate
The abundance of unresolved issues on the working group's agenda puts into question the proposed legislation in its current form. The key unresolved issues include the criteria for defining category 1 genetically modified plants, which are considered equivalent to plants from conventional breeding in the current dossier. According to the current dossier, they should not be subject to risk assessment and should only be labelled at seed level.
The Hungarians point out that the criteria for differentiating between genetically modified plants of category 1 and 2 are of a purely technical/molecular nature and do not include any case-specific safety considerations and do not take into account possible environmental effects. They also emphasise that the consistent labelling of NGT1 is fundamental to ensuring traceability and consumer choice. The Hungarians also suggest waiting for the results of the EU's Darwin and Detective programs, which aim to develop procedures for the detection and traceability of NGT plants by 2027.
The Non-Paper also explicitly mentions the impending effects of the deregulation proposal on the organic and "Ohne Gentechnik" (Non-GMO) economy as well as possible acceptance problems in global trade, which could result in barriers and restrictions. Finally, the Hungarians are calling for solutions to the lack of legal certainty and compliance with the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety.
Settlement rather unlikely
According to current information, only four meetings of the working group are planned to deal with and clarify these fundamental issues. A progress report should be available by the end of the year. Experts consider it unlikely that the extensive agenda will have been worked through by then and that a settlement will have been reached. The conclusion of the procedure is not a high priority for the Hungarian Council Presidency.
According to insiders, there is even the possibility that the EU Commission's deregulation plan will only be pursued again by the Danish Council Presidency in the second half of 2025, as Poland, which will take over the Council Presidency in January 2025, is also considered to be critical of genetic engineering.
Infodienst Gentechnik: Genetic engineering regulation: Hungary wants to reopen debate
(in German)
Tagesspiegel Background: Hungary probably wants to reopen NGT regulation
(in German)
Programme of the Hungarian Council Presidency
EU Commission's genetic engineering plans postponed
Darwin and Detective - New research on detection methods