The European Commission ended 6 years of de facto moratorium on GM authorization by approving Syngenta’s Bt11 sweet corn for food use in Europe on 19 May 2004 (see Box 1). That, despite the fact that voting by experts last December in the EU’s Standing Committee on Food Chain and Animal Health was an even 6-6 country split with three abstentions. Finland, Sweden, Ireland, UK, Netherlands, and Spain voted in favour; Greece, Denmark, France, Austria, Luxembourg, Portugal voted against; and Belgium, Italy and Germany abstained. The same split happened at the Council of Ministers on 27 April, but this time Italy voted in favour, while Spain abstained.

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