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European Union Environment Commissioner, Margot Wallstrom, on the biotech industry:

"They tried to lie to people, they tried to force it upon people ... it is the wrong approach and we simply have not accepted that and European citizens have not accepted it. You simply cannot force it upon Europe.

"So I hope they have definitely learned a lesson from it and especially when they now try to argue that this will try to solve the problems of starvation in the world.

"It will solve starvation among shareholders, but not the developing world unfortunately.
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EU broadside at GM firms' 'lies'
Oct. 13/03
www.ireland.com

The row over genetically modified crops has moved up a gear after the EU Environment Commissioner accused US biotech companies of "forcing" unsuitable GM technology onto Europe.

Margot Wallstrom warned that public suspicion and fears about the technology had been fuelled by US lobbying tactics.

Ms Wallstrom's comments came in advance of the release later this week of the results of the UK's three-year farm scale trials of GM crops.

They also came as protesters marched through central London ahead of the publication of the controversial research. They joined farmers and consumers for the march.

The findings are likely to have a huge influence on the Government's final decision on whether to approve the commercial production of GM crops in the UK.

Ms Wallstrom, who is to have talks with Environment Secretary Margaret Beckett during her visit, was asked if she thought US bio-tech companies had tried to market products more suited to the prairies than European farmers.

She replied: "Of course they have. Absolutely. They have to face the fact that they have chosen the completely wrong approach from the beginning.

"They tried to lie to people, they tried to force it upon people ... it is the wrong approach and we simply have not accepted that and European citizens have not accepted it. You simply cannot force it upon Europe.

"So I hope they have definitely learned a lesson from it and especially when they now try to argue that this will try to solve the problems of starvation in the world.

"After all, why didn't they start with such products, so they could prove to the world that this was exactly what they were interested in doing?

"It will solve starvation among shareholders, but not the developing world unfortunately.

"There are a lot of aspects to this playing into the whole picture of suspicion and fear."

Ms Wallstrom said it had to be demonstrated that GM crops did not in the long term have a negative impact on biodiversity.

Europe was far more central to the negotiations in this area than the United States.

"There is also a lot of ignorance about this," she said.

Story filed: 16:51 Monday 13th October 2003