Altered food could soon be legal in EU
However, Bt11 has already been imported into the EU for years for use in animal feed.
The EU has not allowed experimental or commercial growth of any new gene crops since October 1998, by which stage 18 GM plant varieties had been approved in the EU, including maize, rapeseed, chicory, soybeans.
As consumer fears grew in the late 1990s, EU states such as Austria, France, Greece, Italy and Luxembourg banned already approved GM crops, and restricted GM field trials.
European consumer opposition, estimated at more than 70%, still deters many supermarkets from stocking gene-spliced foods.
But the EU has been slowly moving to end its blockade, including new rules due in 2004 for labelling and tracing food and feed containing 0.9% or more of GM material.
GM crops have been genetically altered to improve resistance to insects or viruses, and to increase tolerance towards herbicides or extreme weather.
One of the best known examples is GM soya, which is tolerant to glyphosate herbicides, allowing better weed control. Supporters of GM technology say it will lower costs, increase yields, decrease the need for chemicals and help to feed a hungry world.
Opponents are concerned about health and environment risks, and they say not enough studies have been done to prove it is safe.
The US is the world leader in biotech crops, with gene-spliced varieties accounting for 75% of US soybeans, 71% of cotton and 34% of maize. US farmers estimate EU bans have cost them nearly 250m a year in corn exports alone.
