News archive

New petition against dilution of GMO regulations
Numerous environmental, consumer and organic associations have launched a joint Europe-wide online petition against the weakening of EU rules on genetic engineering. In the current legislative process, the EU Commission has positioned itself clearly biased in favor of such deregulation.

Changeover: "VLOG verified" to become a certification mark
The "VLOG geprüft"/"VLOG verified" seal will be changed to the new brand category "Gewährleistungsmarke" ["certification mark"] for independent standard issuers, just like the "Ohne GenTechnik" [Non GMO] seal. All "VLOG verified" licensees will be asked to sign a new license agreement for this purpose. They have already been informed directly.

Clandestine genetic engineering in Easter eggs?
Eggs from hens that come from genetically modified breeding hens should be labelled accordingly. This is the opinion of 85 percent of respondents in a representative survey commissioned in Germany by VLOG shortly before Easter. 70 percent would not buy such GM eggs.

CRISPR GM eggs without risk assessment and labelling?
According to internal communication, the EU Commission considers neither approval procedures nor genetic engineering labelling to be necessary for eggs and laying hens derived from genetically modified chickens. This would be tantamount to anticipatory deregulation.

England: Genetic engineering deregulation for research only for now
The announced deregulation for certain new genetic engineering processes in England after Brexit is taking shape. Initially, it will apply "only" to research. For commercial cultivation and use in food and feed, approval procedures and labelling will remain in place.

Tegut is first ENGA member from the food retail sector
The [German] Tegut supermarket chain is the first corporate member from the food retail sector in the new European "Ohne Gentechnik" association ENGA (European Non-GMO Industry Association). This further strengthens the voice of this important economic sector in Brussels.

More than 70,000 comments on EU’s GMO deregulation plans
More than 70,000 EU citizens, associations and organizations took the opportunity to comment publicly on the EU Commission's GMO deregulation plans. In this context, VLOG, among others, warned once again of the major economic risks of such deregulation for the “Ohne Gentechnik” [Non-GMO] sector.

Great Britain's roadmap for the deregulation of genetic engineering
The British government now wants to apply Brexit to genetic engineering regulations as well. Plants developed with new genetic engineering are soon to be exempted from regulations on genetic engineering. This is intended to strengthen the UK's role as one of the leading countries for genetic engineering research. British farmers and food exporters are facing hard times.