The latest research and concern outlined by a British scientist on "superweeds" arising from genetically modified (GM) crops necessitates more than ever a moratorium on growing such produce, according to the Green MEP, Ms Nuala Ahern.
She has accused multinationals such as Monsanto of "stubbornly ignoring danger signals" when research indicated the need for a halt to production until all potential threats were "cleared".
The Government, she said, should heed the latest warnings, notably in relation to superweeds, by introducing a temporary ban and taking "a strong stand in the face of the intimidatory tactics used by the World Trade Organisation" which were designed to force commercial development of the crops.
She was commenting on University of Chicago research, published last week in Nature, and comments from Prof Alan Gray, a member of the UK advisory committee, on releases of GM organisms to the environment. He said the superweed factor would prompt opposition in Britain to cultivation of some crops already being grown in the US. Crops engineered to be resistant to attacking viruses could eventually lead to superweeds through the transfer of the resistance genes to wild plants, he added.
"His views reflect the gulf between regulations in the US and in Europe, but world trade rules could lead the US to insist such crops are approved in the EU, despite scientific opposition," Ms Ahern claimed.
Monsanto's manager for Ireland, Dr Patrick O'Reilly, had insisted that if a plant exhibited such traits in the laboratory as shown in the Chicago study, it would be eliminated from consideration or monitored closely before any field trial.
