News from the legal corner – the EU NGT Regulation continues

In mid-March, the representatives of the Member States approved the Council's negotiating mandate for the regulation on new genomic techniques . The two categories of NGT plants already included in the proposals are to be retained. However, an opt-out option has been agreed for the cultivation of Category 2 plants, allowing Member States to decide to prohibit the cultivation of Category 2 NGT plants on their territory. Furthermore, Member States can take measures against the unintentional presence of Category 1 NGT plants in organic farming . Optional coexistence measures have been introduced; Member States can take measures to prevent the unintentional presence of Category 2 NGT plants in other products; at the same time, they are to be required to take measures against transboundary contamination. According to the Council's negotiating mandate, tolerance to herbicides should not be a characteristic of a Category 1 NGT plant. This is intended to ensure that the plants in question continue to be subject to the authorisation, traceability, and monitoring requirements for NGT Category 2 plants. Based on the mandate, the Presidency can now start negotiations with the European Parliament on the final text of the regulation. The final result must then be formally adopted by the Council and Parliament before the NGT Regulation can enter into force.