* The opinions expressed herein are strictly those of the authors. The authors have written this article in their personal capacity. The views expressed do not represent the views of their colleagues, their current or past employers, the National University of Ireland Galway, the Government of Canada or any other organization or body. The authors have no personal financial interests in any commercial organization that might financially benefit from the publication of this article.

1 Commission Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and the Council amending Directive 2001/18/EC as regards the possibility for the Member States to restrict or prohibit the cultivation of GMOs in their territory COM (2010) 375.

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9 Cantley, “The Regulation of Modern Biotechnology”, supra note 5, at p. 2.

10 EU Commission Communication to the Council entitled Biotechnology in the Community, COM (83) 672 – 3 October 1983.

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16 Minutes from the 40th meeting of the Council of the EMBO, 1st October 1988: “… any legislation should focus not on the technique but on the safety or otherwise of the products generated with it. … Over the last 15 years, experience has shown that recombinant DNA methods, far from being inherently dangerous, are an important tool both for understanding properties of life and for developing applications valuable to humankind and the environment. EMBO strongly believes that there is no scientific justification for additional specific legislation regulating recombinant research per se. Any rules or legislation should only apply to the safety of products according to their properties, rather than according to the methods used to generate them”.

17 Sehnal and Drobník, “White Book genetically modified Crops” supra note 12, at p. 4.

18 Cantley, “The Regulation of modern Biotechnology”, supra note 5, at p. 2.

19 Ibid.

20 Council Directive 90/220/EEC on the deliberate release into the environment of genetically modified organisms OJ 1990 L 117/15 and Council Directive 90/219/EEC on the contained use of genetically modified organisms.

21 Grace Skogstad, “Supranational Regulation and Contested Accountability: The Case of GMO Risk Regulation in the European Union”, EUI Working Paper SPS No. 2008/07(2008).

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27 Ibid.

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29 Ibid.

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34 Sybille de La Hamaide, “Limagrain Moves GM Tests To The US Due French Ban”, Reuters, Feburary 29, 2008, available on the Internet at <http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm?newsid=47254> (last accessed on 2 October 2010).

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42 Ricroch, Bergé and Kuntz, “Suspension of MON810”, supra note 37.

43 European Food Safety Authority, “Scientific Opinion on Applications (EFSA-GMO-RX-MON810) for renewal of authorisation for the continued marketing of (1) existing food and food ingredients produced from genetically modified insect resistant maize MON810; (2) feed consisting of and/or containing maize MON810, including the use of seed for cultivation; and of (3) food and feed additives, and feed materials produced from maize MON810, all under Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003 from Monsanto”, EFSA Journal (2009) 1149, pp. 1–85.

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47 Council of the European Union, “Council Conclusions on Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)”, 2912th Environment Council meeting, Brussels, 4 December 2008.

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49 EU Commission Communication on the Precautionary Principle. COM (2000) 1, at p. 5

50 “[M]easures taken under the precautionary principle should be designed to achieve an equivalent level of protection without invoking the geographical origin or the nature of the production process to apply different treatments in an arbitrary manner”, ibid

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