M any members of the plant breeding sector in Europe are voicing their opposition against the 25 July ruling stating that crops obtained by mutagenesis are GMOs and are, in principle, subject to the obligations laid down by the GMO Directive. The European Seed Association (ESA) sees the Court of Justice ruling in Case C-528/16 as a missed opportunity for agri- cultural innovation in the EU. “It is now likely that much of the potential of these inno- vative methods will be lost for Europe – with significant nega- tive economic and environmental consequences. That strikes a serious blow to European agriculture and plant science,” says Garlich von Essen, ESA Secretary General. Latest breeding innovations such as CRISPR-CAS are widely seen as critical tools to help breeders and farmers to do more with less inputs: less water, less fertilizers, less pesticides, as examples requested by the post-2020 CAP. They are also used to develop improved varieties that better meet consumer demands by providing more nutritious, tastier, healthier, more convenient and more varied plant-based food. “While other parts of the world go ahead with these inno- vations without unnecessary overregulation, Europe’s breed- ers and farmers will once again loose out, without a chance to explore the huge potential and benefits of these plant breeding innovations in practice,’’ von Essen said. EuropaBio’s Secretary General John Brennan highlighted the industry’s concerns about the judgement. He warned that in the absence of improved legal clarity in this area, Europe could miss out on significant benefits of certain applications of genome editing. “In addition to providing consumer and environmental benefits, such as enhanced nutrition, improved health or a more circular economy, innovations made possible by genome editing hold enormous promise to keep Europe at the fore- front of socio-economic development, continuing to generate jobs and growth in the EU,” Brennan said in a press release. “Unfortunately, this court ruling, which is inconsistent with the Advocate General’s Opinion published in January 2018, does not provide the necessary regulatory clarity needed by EU research- ers, academics and innovators.” A change.org petition - Immediate Review of the ECJ Ruling on Plant Genome Editing - has been started. REACTIONS ON TWITTER “Bad news today for Science, Seeds and Sustainable Ag - How are we supposed to do more with less if the EU takes away easy access to plant breeders' latest tool box?” Suzanne Barratt, Chair of the Communications work- ing group, European Seed Association/ Communication Manager at Bayer for the EMEA Seed Business “This decision risks that European agriculture remains isolated from the benefits of innovative developments vis-à-vis the rest of the world. EU legislation should be fit for purpose, encouraging innovation in plant breeding and helping farmers to continue to provide safe and traceable food whilst protecting resources.” Pekka Pesonen, Copa and Cogeca, Secretary General “We regret ECJ's @EUCourtPress interpretation in the Case C-528/16 regarding organisms obtained by certain mutagenesis techniques. EU farmers are facing many challenges like extreme weather conditions, price volatility etc., therefore they need the availability of improved breeds.” Copa-Cogeca “What if we start talking about product and not techniques? Disappointing the ruling of the @CorteUE on research @biotech in @agricoltura. Missed opportunity.” Cibo per la menta “The ruling of the #ECJ risk of breaking down the competitive- ness of #agricoltura Italian and European. To pay the price of non-access to the #InnovazioneVegetale will not only farmers and researchers, but #consumatori” Assosementi “The European Union loses the train of agricultural innovation! The ruling #ECJ issued today leaves a clear competitive disad- vantage to the EU over other areas of the world.” Anove CASE C-528/16 REACTION: A BLEAK VIEW FOR AGRICULTURAL INNOVATION IN THE EU. COMPILED BY MICHELLE CLARKE A Major Upset for the EU Plant Breeding Community 6 I EUROPEAN SEED I EUROPEAN-SEED.COM