Questions
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To ask Her Majesty's Government whether there is a requirement for scientific studies outside the control of the applicant to be submitted during the assessment and approval process for genetically modified crops and foods. [HL2620]
The assessment and approval process for genetically modified (GM) crops and foods is laid down in European Union (EU) legislation. It is not a precondition for marketing approval that safety studies should be undertaken by someone other than the applicant.
There is a specific requirement for applications to market GM food or feed products to include any independent, peer-reviewed studies which have been carried out to demonstrate that the product in question will not have adverse health, environmental or nutritional effects. For applications to release GM crop seeds for cultivation, the EU legislation stipulates that the environmental risk assessment should be carried out in a scientifically sound and transparent manner based on available scientific and technical data.
All applications to market GM crop seeds and food or feed products are subject to independent scientific scrutiny of the potential risks for human health, animal health and the environment.
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To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the indirect effects on all life-forms of producing herbicide-tolerant genetically modified crops and foods, including the presence of toxic chemical residues, are taken into account during the assessment and approvals process. [HL2621]
Under the European Union (EU) legislation on the release of genetically modified (GM) organisms, the indirect environmental effects of the specific management techniques associated with a GM herbicide-tolerant crop, including the novel use of the relevant herbicide, will be considered as part of the risk assessment process for the crop in question.
Other potential effects that may arise from the use of a herbicide associated with a GM herbicide-tolerant crop, including the presence of toxic residues, would be considered under the separate EU legislation concerning the placing on the market of plant protection products.
The precise interplay of the two sets of legislation that are applicable in this context is currently being considered at EU level.