On Saturday 1 July 2017, Luxembourg Minister of Agriculture, Viticulture and Consumer Protection Fernand Etgen met with Steven Druker, winner of the "Luxembourg Peace Prize for Outstanding Promotion of Environmental Peace".

On Saturday morning, in the context of the Agricultural Fair in Ettelbruck, Minister Fernand Etgen met with Steven Druker, who received the Luxembourg Peace Prize for his revelations described in his book Altered Genes, Twisted Truth.

At the meeting Steven Druker described his experiences and efforts as an American public interest lawyer to make bioengineering firms better aligned with evidence-based science and Rational regulation.

The discussion focused on the strategies of bioengineering companies producing genetically modified foods that systematically try to hide the risks associated with the consumption of these products. In his book, Steven Druker describes how risks and scientific facts are ignored with the support of the US Food and Drug Administration.

Fernand Etgen stressed that in Europe, the risk prevention strategy is applied for all genetically modified products. Additionally, at the next Council of European Ministers of Agriculture, ministers will sign a declaration of intent to promote sustainably produced vegetable proteins and support the certification of non-genetically modified soybeans from other regions of the world.

In order to guarantee the exact traceability of GMOs in the food chain, systematic labelling of genetically modified foods has already been in force since 2003.

Photo by Chloé Lamiraux.