"I know one thing and that is that the GMO issue will give me grey hairs," said EU environment Commissioner Wallström yesterday, when answering questions raised by the Parliaments vize president of the Agricultural Committee Graefe zu Baringdorf. She committed to formaly submit the planned Directive on Seed purity to the Parliament for scrutinity. Wallström claimed, that the thresholds proposed by the Commission were based on scientific advise, while she also admitted that no solid scientific data are presently available on the expectable level of contamination resulting from these thresholds. She underlined that the issue "will require further scrutiny and reflection, both within the Commission and in our ongoing discussions with the Member States and the different stakeholders." After a controversial debate also among Members of the Parliament Wallström concluded: "This is a very complex and sensitive issue, legally, technically and politically. As I said earlier, we readily admit that we do not have all the answers."<a href="http://www.zs-l.de/gmo/downloads/ep_debate_24_10_2002.pdf">Minutes of the Parliaments debate including Wallströms answers</a>

A petition to keep European seeds clean of genetically modified seeds is handed over to EU Commissioners Franz Fischler (Agriculture) and David Byrne (Consumer protection) on Monday, October 14th in Luxembourg. More than 300 organisations with over 25 million members and 70.000 individuals signed the petition against the planned "genetic contamination through the backdoor".</p><p><a href="http://www.zs-l.de/saveourseeds/press.html">Press release, list of supporters and background</a>

The UK Governments wildlife watchdogs have warned that EU plans to allow batches of conventional seed to contain significant levels of contamination by genetically modified organisms (GMOs)"could result in adverse impacts on farmland biodiversity"<a href="http://www.zs-l.de/gmo/downloads/foe_pr_14102202.pdf">Press release of Friends of the Earth</a></p><p><a href="http://www.zs-l.de/gmo/downloads/english_nature_aug02.pdf">Position of English Nature</a>

A report published today by the British Department of Environment, Food and Rural affairs GM Inspectorate reveals that there have been no findings of adventitious presence of unapproved GMOs above the limit of detection in seeds for marketing since summer 2000. There was one finding of an approved GMO in seeds of maize, but this was at a very low level, below the interim threshold agreed by the European Community.The GM Inspectorate at the Central Science Laboratory (CSL) is publishing the summary details of the audits it has been carrying out on seed companies since summer 2000.</p><p><a href="http://www.csl.gov.uk/shownews.cfm?id=192">Publication of CSL GM Inspectorate Seed Audit Summary</a>

The petition "Save our Seeds" will be handed over to the European Union`s Agricultual Commissioner Franz Fischler during the next meeting of EU Agricultural Ministers on Monday 14th October in Luxembourg. The petition is still open for signatures until Friday 11th, noon.For further details contact info@zs-l.de

In Austria since the beginning of 2002 a special Seed Regulation prohibits any contamination of seeds with genetically modified varieties. There have been no problems with this regulation, as Thomas Fertl (Greenpeace Austria) describes in his overview.</p><p><a href="http://www.zs-l.de/gmo/downloads/austrian_situation.pdf">Report on the Austrian Seed situation</a>Seit Anfang 2002 ist in österreich eine Saatgutrichtlinie in Kraft, die jegliche Kontamination mit gentechnisch veränderten Sorten untersagt - mit gutem Erfolg, wie Thomas Fertl von Greenpeace österreich beschreibt.</p><p><a href="http://www.zs-l.de/gmo/downloads/austria_saatgut.pdf">Bericht über die Situation in österreich nach Verabschiedung der Saatgutrichtlinie 2002</a>

According to various sources the EU Commission has not been able to present a revised text of it`s draft Seed Directive so far, due to internal disagreements. Is appears unclear by when the Commission will finalise it`s draft. However it is clear that the vote, which had been envisaged for the 27th of September will not take place. Member states have requested an examination period of one month after the text has been transmitted. No new date has be set for the vote so far.

La Fédération Nationale d'Agriculture Biologique des régions de France s' oppose catégoriquement sur un projet de la Commission d'autoriser à la vente, et sans obligation d'étiquetage particulier, des semences contaminées par des OGM à des seuils allant de 0,3% (colza) à 0,7% (soja) selon l'espèce considérée. Il contraindrait les agrobiologistes à faire analyser toutes semences qu'ils utilisent, et toutes leurs récoltes, pour s'assurer de l'absence d'ogm qui entraîneraient le déclassement de leurs productions. Elle a écrit à le ministre d'Agriculture, Hervé Gaymard pour que soit imposée aux semenciers, pour leurs semences conventionnelles, l'absence totale d'ogm détectables, et ce quelle que soit l'espèce. </p><p><a href="http://www.zs-l.de/gmo/downloads/fnab.pdf">FNAB Communique de Presse</a>

Urgent checks are to be carried out on genetically modified seeds after a trial in the UK was contaminated by rogue seeds.Government minister Elliott Morley has told the BBC an urgent investigation will be carried out into how seeds from a GM crop experiment became mixed with a strain unauthorised for planting.But he rejected calls from environmental groups for an immediate end to the field testing of GM crops in Britain.The experiment involved trials of GM rapeseed crops at 12 sites in England and two in Scotland.</p><p><a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2195762.stm">BBC NEWS UK Urgent tests on GM crop seeds</a></p><p><a href="http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/environment/story.jsp?story=324776">The Independent: Ministers suspend GM crop-testing</a>

Weeds become stronger and fitter by cross-breeding with genetically engineered crops, US researchers have shown for the first time. And at the same time, a team in France has demonstrated how easily weeds might be able to swap genes with the GM strains of sugar beet already in field trials.</p><p><a href="http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99992671">New Scientist</a></p><p><a href="http://www.osu.edu/researchnews/archive/sungene.htm">Univ. Ohio press release: Genetically Modified Crops May Pass Helpful Traits To Weeds, Study Finds</a>