Read the label

Brussels

The European Parliament this week approved laws that could allow genetically modified foods to be sold in Europe for the first time in five years, provided they are clearly labeled. The U.S. and other countries that grow the crops have called the moratorium unfair, and last month they filed a suit with the World Trade Organization to have it lifted. U.S. farmers say the ban has cost them $300 million a year in lost exports. A group of skeptical countries, led by France, vowed to keep restrictions in place until they could devise a system to track the crops “from farm to fork.” The U.S. says the plants are safe, but environmentalists say they could crossbreed with local ones, and create “superweeds.” But Europe’s consumer affairs commissioner said consumers would soon have the choice “whether to consume genetically modified foods or not.”