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The municipalities of Kardzhali and Banite in the South of Bulgaria have declared themselves GMO free Regions according to Agrolink Bulgaria, an organic organisation aiming at declaring the entire region of the Rhodope mountains a GMO free Region.</p><p><a href="http://www.genet-info.org/genet/2006/Jun/msg00124.html">9-Misc: Two more municipalities in Bulgaria are declaring to be GMO Free</a>

"We are positioning Tasmania as GM-free and we don't want to fall in with those who would target less-than discerning buyers," Tasmanias Ag minister Llewellyn said this week. "There is a push at a national (Australian) by saying coexistence policies should be adopted by each state. I don't believe it's a viable alternative. I don't want us to lose our competitive advantage.'"</p><p><a href="http://www.themercury.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5936,19622882%255E3462,00.html">The Mercury: GM-free intentions defended</a>

"The delegations welcomed the set of measures decided on by the Commission with a view to improving the risk assessment procedures in the context of the current legislation. Certain delegations underlined the importance of applying the precautionary principle in this context," announces the Council of Environmental Ministers first bulletin on the results of the ministers discussion on GMOs. Outside activists called for more.</p><p><a href="http://euobserver.com/9/21970">EU-Observer: Austrian presidency fails to stop GMO approvals</a></p><p><a href="http://eu.greenpeace.org/issues/news.html#060627_a">Greenpeace EU: Protest on GMOs at the EU Environment Council: make precaution a reality</a></p><p><a href="http://www.greenpeace.org/international/photosvideos/photos/luxemburg">Picture Greenpeace International: 25 Statues of Liberty holding forks and say: "Liberty for Europe to be GMO-free!"</a></p><p><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/cms3_applications/Applications/newsRoom/LoadDocument.asp?directory=en/envir/&filename=90281.pdf">2740th Environment Council meeting, Luxembourg, 27 June 2006 (provisional version)</a></p><p><a href="http://www.foeeurope.org/press/2006/AB_26_June_EFSA.htm">FOE: EU Environment Ministers urged to introduce tougher food safety rules</a>

While Europeans, according to a recent Eurobarometer poll of the EU Commission are embracing biotechnologies for medicine and industrial purposes their rejection of GMOs in food is actually bolder than ever.</p><p><a href="http://www.foodnavigator.com/news/ng.asp?n=68572&m=1FNE621&c=ypkkixmgmnrarsx">Europeans still largely oppose GMOs, says new report</a>

A high level meeting of the Commission, the incoming Finnish EU-presidency and biotech companies was held in Helsinki on June 20th to discuss the EU's biotech strategy. NGOs were not admitted.</p><p><a href="http://www.foeeurope.org/press/2006/HH_20_June_secret_meeting.htm">FoE Europe: Friends of the Earth exposes EU for secret biotech industry bias</a>

208 of the 727 members of the European Parliament have signed a written declaration demanding the right of regions to ban GMOs in their country and a calling for a ban of GMO patents. Given the fact that these demands would have clearly contradicted previous decisions of the Parliament this number of supporters is outstanding.</p><p><a href="http://icppc.pl/pl/gmo/index.php?id=224">ICPPC: Declaration 14/2006</a>

At a meeting of national experts and representatives of the European Food Safety Authority on GMO risk assessment harsh words were kept behind closed doors. According to participants numerous experts made far reaching suggestions to overhaul the present system of risk assessment. On the lighter side an EFSA official told Reuters "that it was natural that the agency was using short-term data from the industry in its assessments because GMOs were fairly young".</p><p><a href="http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/36866/story.htm">Reuters: Food Safety Body Says Works Closely With EU on GMOs</a>

Supervisors of the county of Santa Cruz unanimously agreed on a 'precautionary' moratorium on the cultivation of GMOs in the region around the Capital of California.</p><p><a href="http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/archive/2006/June/21/local/stories/10local.htm">Santa Cruz Sentinel: County bans biotech crops</a>

A comprehensive overview on the European Unions state of politics on genetically modified organisms, complemented with links to many relevant EU web-sites and references has been published by the USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service.</p><p><a href="http://www.fas.usda.gov/scripts/gd.asp?ID=146187745">USDA: EU-25Biotechnology Annual Agricultural Biotechnology Report 2006</a>

The approval of 17 field trials by the French government, including two with pharmaceutical GMOs, have been criticised by various organisations. There is still no proper GM law governing such trials in France.</p><p><a href="http://www.gmwatch.org/archive2.asp?arcid=6632">GMWatch.org</a>