GMO-free news from Bulgaria

01.01.1970

Bulgaria moves to protect children from GM food

A ban of all genetically modified products and ingredients for preparation of children foods in Bulgaria has been proposed Wednesday in an amendment in the Bulgarian Food Act. The amendment, proposed by Desislava Taneva, chair of the Parliament Committee on Agriculture and Forests, from the ruling party GERB and two other MPs from the right-wing ?Blue Coalition?, stipulates a full ban on the distribution and sale of food products containing genetically modified organisms in child care centers, kindergartens, schools and the adjacent commercial outlets (100 m in range).

01.01.1970

Bulgaria maintains ban on GM crop

With not a single vote in favour and 168 against, proposals to lift existing limitations on cultivation of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in Bulgaria were thrown out by Parliament on March 18 2010. The surprise decision came after ruling GERB party changed its position and dropped its support for the bill, Bulgarian-language daily Dnevnik said.

01.01.1970

Controversial GMO act stalls in Bulgarian Parliament

The vote stirred heated debates between representatives of different parties, leading to the decision to vote on the most argued about text on Thursday - the so-called article 80 introducing the general ban to grow genetically modified organisms. The ban would not apply to GMO already on the market. [...] The only text that was passed Wednesday was the requirement for all foods containing GMO to have clear signs about the content with twice larger font than all other letters on the label and different color letters.

01.01.1970

Agriculture Minister: No GM crops will be grown in Bulgaria

Bulgaria Agriculture Minister, Miroslav Naydenov, has stated that Genetically Modified foods will not be allowed ?to reach Bulgarians? tables?. Naydenov stated Tuesday that all the European requirements will be introduced into the Bulgarian legislation, but added that the amendments to the GMO Act will also ban GM crops from being grown in the country.

01.01.1970

GMO has no chance in Bulgaria

The owners of cornfields polluted with GMO to be paid compensations
GMO cannot be cultivated in Bulgaria for experimental or commercial purposes ? this will be the real-term effect of the GMO Act that will be passed on a second reading by the Parliamentary Committee for Environment next week.

01.01.1970

People in Bangladesh and Africa would have starved without GE crops, says EP President

the European Parliament President said before the official guests, MPs and representatives of diplomatic missions that if there were no GMOs people in many countries, like Bangladesh and Africa, would have starved. [...] ?It is hard to say no the GMOs. It is not possible for us to contradict,? Buzek noted.

01.01.1970

Bulgarian Goverment forced down on new GMO law

In January 2010, the Bulgarian parliament voted, on a first reading, legislation allowing the release of GM organisms into the environment. But as the law awaited final passage, the Environmental Parliamentary Committee came under public pressure to accept a five-year moratorium on GM cultivation and a ban on testing near organic fields and beehives. Environmentalists are now pushing for the new legislation to be dropped completely, rather than pass it with a five-year moratorium.

01.01.1970

Bulgaria MPs agree GMO amendments to protect organic farmland

The Bulgarian Parliamentary Committee on the Environment has agreed that GMOs will not be allowed within 7 kms of organic farmland, and 10 kms away from permanent, registered beehive clusters. They also adopted a five-year ban on the cultivation of GMOs for commercial and scientific research in the field. The document was voted before the new law on GMOs was adopted on second reading. The committee has accepted these changes to the Law on Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) at the proposal of Evdokiya Maneva, Deputy Minister of Environment and Water.

01.01.1970

Bulgaria parliament committee adopts changes to GMO act including 5-year ban on GE crop cultivation

The Bulgarian Parliamentary Committee on Environment and Water has adopted the proposed changes to the GMO Act including the 5-year ban on GM Crop cultivation. The decision was backed by the 11 MPs on the Committee and will be voted on next week in the second hearing of the Act in the Bulgarian Parliament. It was passed at its first reading in January.

01.01.1970

Prime Minister Borisov: 5-year GM crop ban ensures calmness in Bulgaria

Bulgaria PM Boyko Borisov has stated that the proposed 5-year ban on GM crop trials will ?guarantee calmness? in Bulgarian society. ?I think that what the GERB MPs and the cabinet are proposing for Genetically Modified Organisms: firstly a moratorium for 5 years on everything to reassure the public and then what Brussels wants ? to vote on the changes, I think this is a 100% guarantee for all fear GMOs,? Borisov said Friday.

01.01.1970

Almost all Bulgarians stand against GM food

Over 300 environmentalists and consumers gathered at a protest rally against GMO in the last days of January. About 91% of the readers of the Standart declared against genetically modified plants being grown in Bulgaria, a survey in the Standart Internet edition showed. People insist that the state should not allow the use of foods containing modified genes in Bulgaria.

01.01.1970

Bulgarians rise in protest against genetically modified crops

Several hundred Bulgarians protested against the allowing of genetically modified organisms by the country?s legislation. [...] ?I am not sure whether the decision to adopt the GMO Act is the result of incompetence on part of the Environment Ministry who might have decided to harmonize Bulgaria?s legislation with that of the EU by liberalizing everything,? said lawyer Svilen Ovcharov from the ?Green Advocates? association. He pointed out that the decision to back GMO in Bulgaria would affect the popularity of all political parties which support it.

01.01.1970

First victory in the public debate on the changes in the Bulgarian GMO law

Following the strong pressure by the public, the experts? arguments and the numerous meetings the Ministry of Environment stepped back and accepted most of the suggestions of environmental organizations referring to the proposed changes in the GMO law. [...] The GMO law will be returned for re-consideration in a special working group in the Parliament with the participation of NGO experts, as well as in the consultative committee on GMO in the Ministry of Environment. The new suggestions of ?For the Nature Coalition? and other NGOs will be discussed.

01.01.1970

Bulgaria Parliament eases laws on GM crop cultivation

Bulgaria Environment Minister, Nona Karadzhova, stated that the amendments were necessary to bring Bulgaria inline with the rest of the EU and that they will not lead to the sale of GMO products in Bulgaria or the increased cultivation of GM crops. [...] ?The time for changes to the law on GMOs now is particularly inappropriate because the European Commission is currently discussing new legislation on GMOs, and in a few months it will be necessary to change the law again ? Agrolink Director Dr. Svetla Nikolova concluded.

01.01.1970

Bulgaria Parliament set to ease laws on GM crop cultivation

Bulgarian environmentalists protested against the proposed removal of the bans on the cultivation of GMOs. The Bulgarian Parliament is set to allow a much wider use of genetically modified crops in the country, after the Commission for Environment and Water approved a change in the law on GMOs. After a lengthy debate the Parliamentary Commission decided to harmonize the legislation on GMOs with the EU requirements.

01.01.1970

Agrolink Director Svetla Nikolova: We hope for GM Free Bulgaria

Interview with Svetla Nikolova, Director of AGROLINK (www.agrolink.org). AGROLINK brings together specialists, experts and farmers in a network of partnership with the aim to influence encourage and assist farmers and rural societies in Bulgaria to develop and support organic farming as the most sustainable agriculture system.

01.01.1970

Watch the Monster tomato Tour in Bulgaria

This summer Friends of the Earth is sending its Monster Tomato on tour around Bulgaria, Macedonia and Romania to raise awareness of GMOs (genetically modified organisms). While 70 per cent of Europeans are firmly against GMOs in their food, fields and countries, few Bulgarians know about the problems that GMOs can cause. Having said that, Bulgaria already has five GMO-free municipalities. The tour will pass through regions that are interested in initiating GMO-free zones.

01.01.1970

The Bulgarian GMO law remains restrictive

?There is no necessity of amendments in GMO Law at this point?. This was the conclusion reached on an informal meeting by representatives of the Parliamentarian Environmental Committee, the Minister of environment and his political cabinet. The Bulgarian law is not in conflict with the European legislation, it is even more restrictive. Only if the European Commission comes up with a explicit position about policy change we will consider this issue. Until now the regulations did not cause serious contradictions with the practice, said George Bozhinov, Chair of the standing committee on environment.

01.01.1970

Genetically modified food discovered in Bulgaria

There are foods in Bulgaria's market that are genetically modified according to a several-month research carried out by the public environment and stable development centre and by For the Earth Association.

Soya sauce and waffles that contain genetically modified organisms were found in the market of Bulgaria's seaside city of Varna.

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