An interview by Judith Duesberg of GeN – the Gen-ethical Network – with Peter Wohlleben.
A holistic perspective on the environmental release of genetically engineered bacteria.
In a statement published on 13 October 2026 in the prestigious French newspaper Le Monde, 62 researchers, including ecologists and evolutionary biologists, warn that the European Commission’s proposals risk changing “our relationship with the living world.”
On 7 October, MEPs Marta Temido (S&D) and Martin Häusling (Greens/EFA) held discussions with four scientists specialising in microbiology and ecology on the topic: Genetically Engineered Micro-Organisms – Opportunities and Risks.
Today, 36 civil society organisations from 12 countries urged MEPs to reject plans to weaken EU safety requirements for the environmental release of genetically modified microorganisms (GMMs), including bacteria, yeasts, algae and viruses. The appeal follows a similar call from European ecological scientists to maintain strong safeguards.
Eight companies and four associations representing GMO-free agriculture in Germany have filed an action with the General Court of the European Union in Luxembourg. The action for annulment challenges Regulation (EU) 2026/1388 of 17 June 2026 on plants obtained through “new genomic techniques” (NGTs).
The Slovak government will file a lawsuit with the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) against the new EU regulation on genetically modified plants developed with new genetic engineering techniques, according to Prime Minister Robert Fico.
The EU is moving towards weaker rules for genetically modified microorganisms (GMMs) deliberately released into the environment. The Commission says EU GMO regulations are blocking access to products available elsewhere. But the global market for environmental GMMs is tiny, their benefits remain uncertain, and scientists warn that environmental releases could pose risks that are difficult to predict, control or reverse.
National GMO coexistence rules still apply to all genetically modified (GM) plants, including those deregulated under new EU laws, a new legal opinion shows. This is because the EU has never exhaustively regulated these areas, also not in its latest Regulation (EU) 2006/1388 on plants derived from “new genomic techniques” (NGT). The German federal ministry of agriculture disputes this finding,…
Following today’s vote in the European Parliament, there will no longer be any specific safety assessments, labelling requirements for food and feed, or traceability in the environment for most genetically modified crops. This failure of democratic discourse on technology undermines the credibility of organised science and the already limited trust in the integrity of politics.
The European Parliament today voted to endorse the outcome of trilogue negotiations on the EU’s proposed legislation for genetically modified plants developed using so-called new genomic techniques (NGTs). Under the new rules, many plants engineered with gene editing techniques such as CRISPR/Cas will fall outside EU GMO law, meaning requirements for environmental risk assessment, traceability measures and consumer labelling will no longer apply.