The Environment & Food Agency (EFA) has recently granted a licence to the Icelandic biotech company ORF Líftækni hf. for considerably extended outdoor production of GM pharmaceutical barley. The licence is granted under the auspieces of a regulation that is markedly less strict than present EU regulations. The crop will be grown on a land owned by the Soil Conservation Agency in South Iceland. The licence means that within two years GM barley (containing biologically active compounds) will be growing on up to 30 hectares of cropland in the middle of Iceland´s main agricultural region, in between areas and farms producing food, feed and seed. 

According to the present regulation in Iceland only two agencies must comment on applications for the release of GMOs, i.e. the Icelandic Institute of Natural History (IINH) and the Advisory Committee on GMOs (AC).  The AC´s comment has been published and, surprisingly, it does not raise any objections or reservations to ORF´s application.

Over the recent months some significant information have been put forward, f.e. at a conference held in Reykjavík on March the 3rd, about substantial risks involved in outdoor growing of GM pharm crops. Large producer and consumer organisations and environmental groups have warned against such crops and demanded more research and public debate before further licences be granted. The authorities have disregarded those requests.

The experience abroad demonstrates that containment of GM plants is impossible. Internationally renowned experts who use GM technology to develop pharmaceuticals strongly advise against using plant species for that purpose which are also used for food and feed, because of the risk of contamination from biologically active compounds. But barley is precisely used for food and feed in Iceland, and increasingly so.

The AC seems unconcerned about this; in its comments it simply refers to a study made by one of ORF´s main shareholders which states that there is no risk of the GM barley cross-pollinating with other plants.

Europe does not allow outdoor commercial production of GM pharm crops. The European countries consider the risk too great and European public is overwhelmingly opposed to GMOs. In large parts of the continent producers and public authorities are protecting their image and environment by declaring themselves GM-free. The EFA´s licence for ORF´s GM pharmaceutical barley moves Iceland´s image and environmental safety policy into a different direction.