EFSA opinion on the safety of GM rice
Friday 15 September 2006
The European Food Safety Authority has today published its risk assessment of imported long grain rice containing traces of LLRICE601.
This follows the announcement by the US authorities that rice containing trace amounts of this illegal genetically modified (GM) material may have been imported into the EU. The European Commission subsequently asked the EFSA to assess the safety of this rice.
EFSA's Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) panel has concluded: �On the basis of the available molecular and compositional data and the toxicological profile of a newly introduced protein, the panel considers that the consumption of imported long grain rice containing trace levels of LLRICE601 is not likely to pose an imminent safety concern to humans or animals.�
When it first became clear that this rice may have been imported into the EU, import controls were imposed by all member states to ensure that all consignments of American long grain rice were certified to be free from LLRICE601.
The Commission also began talks with the US authorities to ensure that no further products containing unauthorised GM material are exported to Europe.
The Commission has indicated that it will convene a further meeting with member states to re-evaluate the situation in light of the EFSA opinion and further monitoring data from Member States.