Adopted Declaration on the Alpe-Adria-Danube Area Free from GMOs

The Parliamentary Committee for Agriculture supported on Friday the initiative of its chairwoman Marijana Petir and adopted the Declaration on the Alpe-Adria-Danube area free from GMOs.

The Declaration will be sent to the Croatian Parliament for adoption, and through national decisions and cooperation with countries in the region, activities will be implemented to ensure that the entire area remains free from GMOs, the Committee announced.

The importance of this initiative is underscored by the fact that the European Commission grants approvals for some GMO products for use within the EU, despite the opposition of the European Parliament and the decision of the European Court, making it essential to strengthen Croatia’s commitment as a GMO-free country.

Petir initiated the initiative back in 2010, after achieving with experts and the interested public that all counties in Croatia be declared GMO free.

For the initiative to declare the entire Alpe-Adria region free from GMOs, she received support from representatives of the Hungarian, Austrian, and Slovenian parliaments, as well as the Italian ambassador to Croatia.

As a Croatian Member of the European Parliament, Petir elevated the initiative to the European level and in 2014 received support from 34 Members of the European Parliament from Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, Austria, and Hungary who co-signed the Joint Declaration on the Initiative to Establish the Alpe-Adria Region Free from GMOs, which also served as a basis for discussion at the sessions of the working bodies of the Croatian Parliament.

We want Croatia to remain free from GMOs

– Croatia is a small country with a relatively well-preserved environment, we are a minor polluter, more than half of our territory is protected in various categories of nature protection, the Adriatic is the cleanest sea in the Mediterranean, and our farmers still produce food in a traditional way, Croatia is a country free from GMOs, and we want it to remain so in the future – said Petir at the Committee.

She also reminded that the goals of relevant European documents are aimed at sustainable agricultural production and the preservation of rural areas, including a target of 25 percent of land under organic production by 2030.

Since organic farming excludes the use of GMOs, the Declaration opens up space for strengthening organic production in Croatia.

The Declaration calls on the competent authorities for clearer labeling of GMO-free products, strengthening official controls and laboratories for GMOs, and emphasizes the importance of encouraging various forms of financing projects aimed at environmentally sensitive and organic agricultural production, the Committee stated.