About Us
Who is behind Save Our Seeds?
At present over 200.000 individuals and 300 organisations with a combined membership of more than 25 million European citizens support the Save Our Seeds petition, and their number is growing every day. The initiative is co-ordinated by the Foundation on Future Farming in Berlin, Germany, a charity which primarily supports the development and breeding of organic seed. The initiative focuses on establishing strict seed purity within the European Union.
This website keeps supporters of Save Our Seeds informed about further developments and provides a common tool for information exchange. Save Our Seeds does not represent the views of supporting organisations beyond the common goals stated in the Save Our Seeds petition. The Foundation on Future Farming is responsible for the content of this site and its accuracy. It aims to provide all relevant information relating to the issue. Any contributions as well as moral, political and financial support are very much appreciated.
Why are we involved?
Should genetically modified organisms (GMO) be used for food and feed production and released into the environment? This is a highly controversial issue in Europe and elsewhere. A majority of consumers and farmers in Europe do not want GMOs in their food or on their fields for reasons which range from health and environmental to political and ethical concerns. The maize line MON810 from the US agrochemical company Monsanto, is the only GMO approved and commercially cultivated within the EU. The GM maize event T25 is also approved, however, no varieties are currently on the market. Following the authorisation of MON810 by the Commission in April 1998, the Commissioner for the Environment imposed a "de facto" moratorium on any new approvals for the commercialization of GMOs until 2004. It is uncertain how EU policy on GMOs will develop. An EU Directive on the release of GMOs into the environment and regulations for labeling and traceability of GMOs were adopted by the European Council and Parliament in 2003 and continue to be debated. However, all parties agree that the possible introduction of GMOs in agriculture must not force citizens to eat or use such GMOs, and strict labeling legislation as well as so called coexistence regulations should enable consumers and farmers to make an informed choice.
The New Seed Directive
With the support of the European Commission, industry giants have been trying to introduce labeling thresholds under a new Seed Directive for conventional seeds of various crops since 2002. What does this mean for farmers, who do not wish to plant genetically modified seeds? Would farmers' freedom to choose be preserved under the proposed Seed Directive? If it is left up to the EU Commission, farmers will not be able to avoid planting genetically modified seeds in the future. Every 330th mais or rape plant, tomatoe, turnip, or potato growing on a conventional or organic farm in Europe could be a genetically modified organism (GMO) according to the EU Commission's concept for a 0.3% threshold. In the case of mais, this would amount to over 300 genetically modified plants per hectare. GMOs would be able to propagate in supposedly GM-free cultivation - where not a single farmer has deliberately planted a genetically modified variety. Unlike with chocolate or vegetable oil, seeds can reproduce and multiply, and their offspring can fertilize other plants. The contamination threshold suggested by the EU Commission could even lead to entire harvests exceeding the level above which food and feed must be labeled as genetically modified (max. 0.9%). Farmers and food producers would have to test all their products for the presence of GMOs in order to comply with labeling regulations. This would cause massive problems, costs and risks all along the food production chain. Moreover, it would be virtually impossible to recall a GMO variety once it has been approved. If such a recall became necessary for health or environmental safety reasons, all seeds, which could possibly contain these GMOs, would have to be recalled. Setting a seed threshold value for contamination would be the factual demise of GM-free farming.
We Need Your Support!
For these reasons, the supporters of the Save Our Seeds petition demand strict purity laws for non-GM seeds, irrespective of whether they deem the introduction of GMOs to be desirable or not. Additionally, non-GM seeds should remain free of GMOs in order to maintain the integrity of humankind's oldest heritage, which has been developed and passed on from generation to generation for more than 8,000 years.
The SOS-Petition was launched in April 2002, when the first draft for a GM Seed Directive was presented by the European Commission. In October 2002 more than 80.000 signatures and a long list of supporting organisations were handed over to the European Commissioners Franz Fischler and David Byrne (more...). Both promised a thorough examination of the implications of the Seed Directive. Two years later, EU Commissioner for the Environment Margot Wallström presented a new proposal fpr seed thresholds. In May 2004 Save Our Seeds presented the petition to Commissioner Margot Wallström containing 200.000 signatures and in the name of 300 European organizations (more...). The outgoing President of the Commission, Prodi, put Wallström's proposal on hold. Since then, the Commission has repeatedly emphasized that thresholds should be defined, but thus far has submitted no new proposal.
