The European Union announced today that all rice imported from the United States will have to be certified to prove it does not contain an unauthorised genetically-modified strain.

Ireland: The EU is expected to halt all imports of US animal feed after it was discovered that an unauthorised GM maize variety has found its way onto the market.

A five-and-a-half-year European ban on the use of genetically-modified crops is expected to be lifted today.

The European Union’s head office said today it would approve a variety of genetically modified corn for human consumption next week, ending a six-year biotech moratorium that the United States has challenged at the World Trade Organisation.