European lawmakers today adopted new food-labeling rules that could pave the way for lifting a European Union-wide ban on genetically modified (GM) products. The new rules will require labels for food and animal feed containing at least 0.9 percent GM ingredients. Though the move may lead to the opening of E.U. markets to GM foods, environmentalists and consumer advocates welcomed the change because it will give the public the information they need to reject GM products if they so choose. Enviros also applauded the E.U. for standing up to pressure from the U.S., which has fiercely criticized European opposition to GM foods and support for labeling practices. Eric Gall of Greenpeace called the E.U. decision “a slap in the face of the U.S. administration” and expressed the hope that it would serve as a model for the U.S. and Canada, “where all such freedom and information is currently denied.”
