Monsanto (MON) Corn Banned by France

After the regulatory arm of the European Union, the European Commission, told France it wasn't going to take any action against Monsanto (MON)'s MON810 (a genetically modified corn) in the near term, France took it upon itself to place a temporary ban on the corn until "guidance" is provided by EU regulators.

As of March 18, the ban will be put in place by the French government.

The French Agriculture Ministry said this:

“Because of the proximity of the planting period, the Agriculture Ministry has decided today to take a precautionary measure that means to temporarily prohibit the cultivation of the corn MON810 on the national territory in order to protect the environment.”

Alleged and highly suspect "recent scientific studies" have said this particular corn variety includes “important risks” to the environment.

After talking with the European Food Safety Authority, the European Commission told the French they wouldn't be taking any measures before the upcoming opinion, prompting France to take the dubious step of banning the corn variety.

France of course has seemingly always protected its agriculture because it can't compete head to head against farmers from around the world.

This is likely another attempt to keep competitors out of the French market, probably providing protection for seed companies residing in the country, which is the larger corn producer in Europe.

According to Monsanto spokesman John Combest, “The new ban is not justified by scientific evidence.”