Guatemala has become the latest Latin American battleground in the fight over genetically modified organisms (GMOs), with Europe and the United States lobbying for rules that suit their competing interests. The United States, which grows, consumes and exports much of the globe’s gene-altered crops, is pushing for swift acceptance of the technology in Guatemala. But the EU, which limits the production and import of GMOs, is concerned that rapid commercialization of gene-modified crops in Latin America is sharply reducing the supply of non-transgenic food available to it on world markets. While the average time required to approve new transgenics in the United States is 15 months, in the EU the process takes two to 10 years. Such disparities fuel EU concern that... [Log in to read more]
