“This is a historical victory. To me this is as if Austria had become Europe´s football champion”, said Austrian Environment minister, Nikolaus Berlakovich.

This result could mean another defeat of the European Commission when the EU countries be called to vote to make France and Greece lift their temporary limitations to the cultivation of MON 810 crop.

The decision to promote a vote against the safeguard measures taken by Austria and Hungary was made by the President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Durao Barroso.

Despite the fact that the defeat of the GMOs promoters was signigicant, Brussels has announced it will not take a step back and that it will continue pressuring those countries who oppose GMOs.

The EU authorizes the trade of GMOs, but only one seed, MON 810, is cultivated in European territory, after being approved ten years ago, in 1998.

Currently, the renewal of its authorization is being considered by the European Food Safety Authority, which requested Monsanto “additional information on the environmental impact” of this crop.

The Commission had failed last February 16th when it first tried to make France and Greece authorize Monsanto´s GM crop, in the framework of a vote by the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health of the EU.

In early February 2008, the French government called for the “precautionary principle” and decided to ban the cultivation of this GM seed. The following month, Monsanto appealed to the French State Council to lift the measure, although it was in vane.

In early November, the European Safety authorities estimated that to keep in force in France the safeguard clause against MON 810 corn had no basis.

Before its prohibition, MON810 was the only GMO cultivated in France.