In a trial vote in Brussels last week, a narrow majority of EU Member States voted in favour of abolishing mandatory GMO labelling and further eroding the regulations for new genetic engineering (NGT). According to reports, Germany abstained from voting.
Alexander Hissting, Managing Director of the Association for GMO-Free Food (VLOG), commented; “It is right and important that Germany did not agree to the ill-conceived and economically and consumer-damaging abolition of mandatory GMO labelling in the EU. The German government should now throw its full political weight behind protecting the economy and consumers in order to stop the deregulation of genetic engineering despite today’s majority in the trial vote in Brussels.
“Now the European Parliament (EP) must save genetic engineering labelling. It can still overturn the proposed legislation in its vote in early 2026. This is exactly what MEPs should do, as they already called for the retention of mandatory GMO labelling and the exclusion of patents on genetically modified plants in their majority position adopted in 2024 – both of which contradict the current proposal.
“MEP Jessica Polfjärd (EPP), chief negotiator on NGT, should be wary of relying on the support of far-right MEPs for the EP to approve deregulation. This is particularly important for her group leader Manfred Weber (CSU/EPP) from Germany, who voted against deregulation in 2024, deviating from his own group. If in doubt, Markus Söder must make it clear to him that majorities achieved with the help of the far right are never a good idea.
“The fact that, after much hesitation and numerous appeals from Rewe, dm and other food companies, among others, the federal government has not approved the deregulation of genetic engineering is a welcome sign. Environment Minister Schneider and Justice Minister Hubig (both SPD) in particular have thankfully made their position very clear on this issue. It is also noteworthy that even the CSU-led Federal Ministry of Research is now taking the interests of companies, agriculture and consumers into account in its deliberations.”
A qualified majority of EU Member States on 19 December backed the deregulation of genetically modified (GM) plants produced using so-called new genomic techniques (NGTs). Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia did not indicate support during this morning’s meeting of the Committee of Permanent Representatives (COREPER) in Brussels.
Franziska Achterberg, Head of Policy at Save Our Seeds, commented: “Now it is confirmed: most EU governments want to allow untested and unlabelled GM plants to be released into the environment and onto our plates, putting both people and nature at risk. In doing so, they are siding with multinational biotech corporations – at the expense of farmers, the food sector, consumers, and the environment. It is now up to the European Parliament to reject this deal,” GM Watch reported.
Since 2023, the EU has been discussing plans to deregulate genetically modified (GM) plants produced with so-called “new genomic techniques” (NGTs). The aim is to exempt most of these plants from existing EU requirements for GMOs, including mandatory consumer labelling, traceability, risk assessment, and the submission of analytical detection methods. At the same time, patenting would remain fully permitted.
On 19 December, the Committee of Permanent Representatives (COREPER) held an informal vote on the outcome of the EU trilogue negotiations. The EU Council of Ministers must now formally confirm this vote at ministerial level. The European Parliament also still needs to approve the plans. The first vote in the Environment Committee is scheduled for January 2026, with a plenary decision likely to follow in March. Since most Social Democrats, Greens, and Left MEPs oppose GMO deregulation, a majority in Parliament can only be achieved with support of the far-right.
The European Commission has recently presented two proposals that would further weaken EU GMO regulations. On 16 December, it unveiled plans to exempt GM microorganisms used in fermentation processes from EU GMO rules, even if residues may still be present in the final product. In a separate proposal, the Commission aims to create a “low-risk” category of GM microorganisms released into the environment, which would be subject to reduced regulatory requirements.
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