French Council’s guarded OK to Bt11 maize

The French High Council of Biotechnologies (HCB) has stated that the cultivation of Syngenta's genetically modified corn borer ( Ostrinia nubilalis)-resistant Bt11 maize is acceptable if monitoring plans on the impact on human health and the environment are established rigorously. The French food safety agency, the AFSSA, gave an opinion in 2008 declaring the maize line to have the same level of safety as conventional maize lines and their derivatives. The Ministry of Food and Agriculture asked the HCB in February to deliver an opinion on the line.