Debate on the deregulation of fresh genomic techniques (new genomic techniques–NGT), i.e. the alleged fresh GMOs, enters a key phase before the crucial plenary vote in the European Parliament planned for May. A stake? Our right to know what goes on our plates. Meanwhile, the global social run "Blacked-Out Ingredients" on the last consecutive wants to turn the Brussels table, utilizing an innovative tool for sending emails to decision-makers. Aim? Together with European citizens, shout out the voice of corporations and make the voice of average consumers heard. Can this "digital weapon" defend European agriculture from corporate dictatorship?
At the heart of the current dispute lies the NGT, which is about to be ubiquitous on plates in the European Union.
Supporters of these technologies argue that the precise gene editing is just a modern and faster version of conventional plant cross-breeding, which will make the crops immune to drastic climate change. However, for critics, including many experts, social, agricultural and consumer organisations, NGT is simply a repackaged GMO, which through gene change de facto they stay artificial interference in nature, whose effects (especially long-term ones) we cannot predict.
The main nonsubjective of the rules presently being imposed in Brussels is to deregulation seeds and foods produced utilizing these fresh methods. In practice, this would mean a extremist relaxation of existing rules, specified as for existing GMOs, which would no longer should be tested as rigorously for environmental impacts and human wellness as has been done so far. Supporters of this solution emphasize that, from a method point of view, NGT includes a set of methods specified as targeted mutagenicosis or cisgenesis (often utilizing the alleged molecular CRISPR-Cas9 scissors), which let for DNA editing without introducing abroad genetic material from another species, which was the domain of transgenesis, or classical GMOs.
The EU proposal is about to isolate a peculiar category of NGT plants, which will be compared in law to conventionally bred varieties, which are the ones we have been increasing for hundreds of years.
Legally, this means exempting them from the restrictive requirements of the existing GMO Directive (2001/18/EC), thus exempting producers from the work to closely monitor crops, guarantee traceability in the supply chain and, crucially, marking products that scope store shelves.
Food without a metric, seeds under lock and key. How will deregulation hit our plates?
If the proposed law is adopted in its current form, its consequences for the average citizen will be drastic. First of all, as we mentioned,
The fresh rules will remove the requirements for the labelling of many "new GMOs", which will explicitly deprive consumers of the ability to decide whether they want to buy genetically modified foods or not.
This will destruct not only freedom of choice, but besides key protection for food producers and seed free of modification. Thus, there is simply a immense hazard that products with hidden ingredients of NGT will appear on the store shelves, which nobody will inform us about.
The second equally dangerous effect of deregulation is the monopolisation of the agricultural market. All seeds subjected to fresh modifications will most likely be patented. Consumer organisations are already informing that
The fresh law will give control of seeds (and consequently over all food production) into the hands of respective gigantic global corporations.
The request to buy expensive, patented seeds annually will drastically hit the economical situation of European farmers, forcing them de facto for the usage of large-area, intensive monocultures and increased pesticide consumption.
Decades of resistance. A hard past of Fighting for Food Sovereignty
The current conflict in Brussels is another chapter of a long fight that NGOs have been fighting for many years. The beginnings of this movement date back to the turn of the century, erstwhile the first generation of transgenic plants attempted to enter European markets on a large scale. In Poland, civic communities, including the Institute of civilian Affairs, have been consistently looking at decision-makers for more than 2 decades, conducting campaigns to keep a GMO-free country. These actions were not only limited to narrow groups of activists, but in time evolved into broad coalitions of social workers, farmers, beekeepers, local processors and increasingly conscious consumers, which resulted, among another things, in symbolic but politically crucial declarations of provincial seismics about creating GMO-free zones.
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The past of this opposition is besides hundreds of thousands of signatures collected under petitions and appeals, stormy debates on the parliamentary committees of agriculture, protests under ministries and laborious education of society. Information campaigns have for years made the public aware of the complexities of the market, for example, of the legislative paradox in which Poland formally bans modified crops, but at the same time is profoundly dependent on imports of modified soya sharps for the feed industry.
Once the main weapon of socialists was paper petitions, street pickets and direct lobbying in the "national yard". Organizations have built up for years in public debate the awareness that food is not just a commercial commodity. It was treated as the foundation of national security, the guarantor of biodiversity and the pillar of local sovereignty.
Today, however, the situation has changed dramatically.
In the era of the proposal for deregulation on fresh genomic techniques (NGT), the "field of battle" has moved to the level of the European Union's legislatively advanced bodies.
The possible alignment in EU law of NGT plants with conventional varieties will render national defence mechanisms and local bans useless in the face of the alleged single Community market.
Thus, conventional methods of civic force have ceased to suffice in this fresh power. The decisions are already taken distant from national parliaments, in Brussels offices, where the speech of discussion is given by well-organised interest groups. The answer to multimillion-dollar corporate lobbying budgets must be innovative and mass digital pressure. Socialists were forced to set aside megaphones for keyboards and scope for solutions that would let the voice of an average European citizen to be seen.
"Flozen ingredients". Digital objection in your hands
A pan-European run was born in consequence to the upcoming vote "Blacked-Out Ingredients" (p. ‘Flozen ingredients’). Its message is very clear: if the information on the packaging ceases to reflect reality, we will be completely out of control of what we eat. It is hard to make informed decisions without knowing precisely what goes into our basket.
In order to break the wall of the indifference of EU officials, run makers will give into the hands of citizens an highly simple and powerful tool for sending emails.
It will only let in 2 minutes send a message to all Euro-Parliamentarians representing our country, demanding the rejection of a harmful bill.
The full action will be based on the alleged snowball effect. The organizers will besides prepare ready-made material packages encouraging the wide sharing of links to the tool on social media – on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook or TikToku.
Particular emphasis will be placed on the usage of communicators and social media. utilizing the transmission and position function (e.g. on WhatsApp), users can immediately encourage full groups of friends to act. Ba! Even offline channels will be taken care of by the run planners: local retailers and farmers with shops or subscription services will be able to print dedicated graphics with QR code, making it easier for customers to join the protest straight at the box office.
What is crucial to the credibility of the action, the tool will defend against artificial pumping of statistics. In order for the message to scope politicians, the sender will gotta confirm his email address by clicking on a peculiar verification link, which guarantees that all letter will have an authentic, afraid citizen, not a bot. This mechanics will give millions of Europeans the strength to say "NO" loudly for unwanted fresh GMOs on our plates.
Look out! Look out! This is not a drill. Repeat, this is not a drill.
The May European Parliament vote is an absolutely crucial minute and a final test for our food security.
We cannot let decisions about what we eat to fall in the privacy of Brussels cabinets, under the dictatorship of powerful, well organized interest groups.
The changes that may be passed shortly will concrete the strategy for decades, taking distant our inalienable right of choice and beginning the road to patent seeds by biotech giants. If we, as consumers now, stay silent, we will have hidden, unmarked fresh GMOs on our plates quietly, and the substance will be irrevocably decided.
But we're not going to keep quiet. Since conventional forms of protest are no longer sufficient, it is time to decision the fight to a completely new, digital level.
In a fewer days, it's official. launch a Polish installment of a tool for mass mailing. These are the last tests of the tools we're about to hand over to you. It will not be another simple petition that will be stuck in an authoritative drawer – it will be a real shock wave. In just 2 minutes, each of you will be able to send a unique, unacceptable message consecutive to the boxes of all Euro-Parliamentarians representing our country.
Stand by. Read the next issues of the civilian Affairs Week, follow our social media closely, check your email boxes and book this virtually short time for action in the coming days. As shortly as we turn on the green light and print the link, we'll request full mobilisation. We will request a real snowball effect – mass sharing tools on WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook and anywhere else on the network.
We remind you – this is not a drill. This is simply a decisive match for our plate, our freedom of choice and the future of independent agriculture. Collect your strength – a virtual conflict for European food ahead!
