In view of the strong opposition to GMO production in the country, the
Polish government is to launch public consultations this week on the draft
of new legislation prepared by the Ministry of Environment that would take
account of the European Union?s regulations obliging member countries to
introduce GMO and yet at the same time respect the anxieties of those very
many Poles who argue that genetically modified food is dangerous.

It follows from a survey conducted by the PBS DGA market research company
for the ?Gazeta Wyborcza? weekly that resistance against GMO in Poland is
very strong. Sixty percent of Poles believe that eating genetically modified
food products is health hazardous. As many as two in three Poles would not
buy such food even if it was significantly cheaper than traditional
products. And Poles do not want GMO plants to be cultivated in Poland,
either.

Commenting on the survey results, Environment Minister, Professor Maciej
Nowicki said: ?The Polish public has showed wisdom and caution towards
things we aren't prepared for and know little about?. Minister Nowicki who
is an ecology specialist, former deputy head of the UN Commission for
Sustainable Development and an opponent of GMO foods, believes the survey
results would strengthen his hand in talks with the European Commission on
the matter.
Poland and Brussels have been in a legal dispute over GMO. The Commission
filed a lawsuit against Poland in the European Tribunal of Justice for
passing a law banning GMO seeds and animal fodders.

The draft of new legislation drawn up by the Ministry of Environment is an
attempt at complying with EU directives half-way. While not banning GMO
production outright, it gives the provincial authorities the right to
establish GMO-free areas (covering even the whole province) where production
of genetically modified food would be prohibited under the threat of severe
penalties. Special land protection zones will have to be set up around areas
where GMO is produced. The draft also envisages penalties of even up to
three year imprisonment for persons introducing genetically modified food
onto the market without official permission.
Commenting on the draft act, Professor Tomasz Twardowski, molecular
biologist at the Polish Academy of Sciences' Institute of Bioorganic
Chemistry argues that there is no scientific evidence to justify the Polish
government?s restrictive approach to GMO. On the other hand, representatives
of the Polish Greenpeace find the draft not prohibitive enough to ensure
Poland the status of a GMO-free country.

Commentators point out that Poland is not alone in opposing GMO foods.
Support for such food is even lower in many other EU countries: in Austria,
France, Latvia and Greece respectively only 25, 29, 19 and 12 percent of the
population is in favour of GMO.
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