Keeping foreign farm products out of Europe has long been an important political objective of the EU (a short growing season makes northern Europe uncompetitive in agriculture). Free trade agreements have prohibited the Europeans from more obvious methods of restricitve tarrifs. However the genetically modified food canard allows the EU to restrict foreign imports, be Green and politically correct at the same time. How could they resist? Unfortunately for the Europeans, politically enabling radical environmentalists to prohibit biotech will prove to be a serious error. Biotech (when it gets its act together) could be the basis for a new industrial revolution.

Gary