The European Commission has proposed revising the EU authorisation procedure for genetically modified food and feed, allowing individual member states to opt out and ban EU approved GM foods and feed on their territories.

However, the proposals face stiff opposition from the biotech industry, which says Brussels is effectively renationalising EU-wide GM authorisations.

US trade representative (USTR), Michael Froman, was disappointed – especially as the move could complicate efforts to forge an EU-US Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). He says the proposal “appears hard to reconcile with the EU’s international obligations”.

EU health and food safety commissioner, Vytenis Andriukaitis, says the EU had “listened to the concerns of many European citizens”, and so it was right to give “member states a greater say as regards the use of EU authorised GMOs in food and feed across their respective territories”.

The anti GMO lobby has warned national bans could still be open to challenge in the courts.