GENEVA (Reuters) - The World Trade Organization (WTO) confirmed in a final ruling that the European Union broke trade rules with its six-year moratorium on approving genetically-modified (GMO) foods, diplomats said on Thursday.

The verdict, which had been widely expected, also condemned six member states -- Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and Luxembourg -- for applying individual bans on a number of GMO products previously approved by the European Commission.

"The substance of the ruling has not changed," said one diplomat with knowledge of the finding. The WTO issued a preliminary verdict in February.
http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=scienceNews&storyID=2006-05-11T065018Z_01_L10105775_RTRIDST_0_SCIENCE-TRADE-WTO-GMOS-DC.XML