THE COUNCIL OF EUROPEAN AGRICULTURAL MINISTERS HAS NOW AUTHORIZED A 0.9% MAXIMUM CONTAMINATION LEVEL OF GENETICALLY MODIFGIED ORGANISMS (OGM) IN ORGANIC PRODUCTS. ONLY THE MINISTERS FROM ITALY, BELGIUM, GREECE AND HUNGARY VOTE CONTRARY

In all organic products (from wheat to grapes) a maximum accidental level of contamination from genetically modified organisms (OGM) of 0.9% is now permitted. This was the decision recently voted on by the council of 27 European Ministers of Agriculture. The only votes contrary to the law were from Italian Minister Paolo De Castro and his colleagues from Belgium, Greece, and Hungary.

A decision that was probably motivated by the economic interests of food & beverage multinationals, who would obviously give the go ahead to any contamination by genetically modified organisms in organic goods. It is now to be seen what the Italian government will decide, considering its leading position on organic goods in Italy, in order to guarantee both organic producers and consumers who want to be sure that products they are buying are really OGM free. Because, otherwise, producers would see all of their efforts to produce goods that strictly follow organic criteria as futile, while, on the other hand, consumers would lose all faith in the reasons why they buy organic.

The decision by the Council of European Agricultural Ministers was a response to, and refusal of the request made to zero this percentage level and is a hard blow to the Italian leadership in this area at a European level. It is a hard hit for a sector that is based on trust in regards to products that are sold with a notable difference in price precisely because they guarantee safe and natural production methods.
According to an Ismea-AC Nielsen survey, in the first quarter of 2007, family consumption of organic goods increased by 10% with a record value for infant products (+51%) and for rice and pasta (+26%). Italy, the forth largest organic goods producer in the world, is the number one producer in Europe, claiming one third of European organic companies and a quarter of all organic land within the EU, and has the responsibility of taking a vanguard role at the European level to defend this sector that is in real risk of losing its credibility and its market. As well, Italian organic leadership within Europe has increased by 12% this year in regards to the extension of lands that use organic cultivation and by 22% for the number of certified organic companies.