The EU Court legitimises Italia's ban on the cultivation of GM maize
According to the ruling, states may prohibit the cultivation of GMOs without justification
A symbolic battle that always makes headlines, however, the one to cultivate GMOs in Italy, which has never wanted them. Costing fines and burnt crops, it has now come to an end with the official seal of the EU Court of Justice, which ruled today that Italy's banning of the cultivation of transgenic maize is legitimate and requires no special justification.
The ruling refers to the appeal by Giorgio Fidenato, a pioneer in the minority battle in favour of the cultivation of GM maize (the Mon 810 produced by Monsanto), which was planted and destroyed several times in Friuli. The Luxembourg judges confirmed the legitimacy of the ban on the cultivation of genetically modified maize in Italia, pointing out that states can prohibit the cultivation of GMOs without justification, as part of the procedure provided for by Community law, provided that the authorisation holder does not object.
The Court found that the procedure allowing member states to ask the Commission for a geographical limitation of the authorisation to cultivate GMOs was in line with EU law. Fidenato had appealed to Luxembourg after receiving fines totalling EUR 50,000 and the obligation to destroy the cultivated plants.
The Court recalled that the ban on the cultivation of Mon 810 maize in Italia was adopted on the basis of a procedure under EU law, introduced in 2015 (the GMO Directive dates back to 2001), which allows member states to restrict or prohibit the cultivation of genetically modified organisms on their territory. This procedure stipulates that when a Member State requests a change in the geographical scope of the authorisation for the cultivation of a GMO without providing a particular justification and the authorisation holder does not object within 30 days, the European Commission takes note of the change, which becomes immediately applicable.
According to the EU judges, the ban does not violate the principle of proportionality nor does it create discrimination between farmers in different member states. The Court also ruled out that the ban on the cultivation of a GMO constitutes a violation of the free movement of goods, since it does not prevent its import or marketing.
