That this House notes the proposal by the European Commission to revise the EU Organic Regulation and impose on organic products a threshold of 0.9 per cent. for contamination by genetically modified (GM) organisms; further notes the expansion of organic farming in the last decade and its positive contribution to the farming economy and the environment; further notes the wishes of the majority of European consumers to avoid any GM content in food; recognises that most organic certification bodies operate to the practical detection limit of 0.1 per cent.; is concerned that the imposition of a GM threshold for organic food above the detectable level will damage the reputation of organic produce and lead to increasing GM contamination over time; and calls upon the Secretary of State to support non-GM food production and farmer and consumer choice by opposing the use of a 0.9 per cent. threshold as a reference in co-existence measures or in the EU Organic Regulation, ensuring that strict liability rules put the cost of GM contamination on the polluters and not on taxpayers or the non-GM sector, recognising the importance of independent organic certification and the need to protect this system by ensuring that organic means no GMOs, and ensuring that the threshold for all non-GM seed is set at the practical limit of detection.
