EU nations vote against GM crops, but not enough to block them

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - A majority of EU countries voted on Monday against allowing two new genetically modified crops to be grown in Europe, batting the contentious decision on GM cultivation in Europe back to the EU executive, according to two sources.

EU governments were asked to vote on the future of two grades of GM maize, Pioneer's 1507 and Syngenta's Bt11, which kill insects by producing their own pesticide and are also resistant to a particular herbicide.

However, the votes against were not decisive in blocking their introduction because the opposition did not represent a "qualified majority" - also including countries that make up at least 65 percent of the EU population.

The governments were also asked to determine whether to extend authorisation for Monsanto's MON810, an insect-resistant maize that is grown mainly in Spain, but banned in a number of other counties.

More countries voted against than in favour, but again the vote was not considered decisive.

Mute Schimpf, food campaigner for Friends of the Earth Europe, said the decision now rested with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.

"He can put himself on the side of the majority of countries, citizens and farmers who do not want genetically modified crops, or he can back the mega-corporations behind the industrialisation of our countryside," she said.

At the end of last year, 55 GM crops were approved for import as feed and food into Europe. While approved for human consumption, in practice the crops are used as animal feed.

Repeated EU scientific assessments have concluded that GMO crops are as safe for humans and the environment as their conventional counterparts, but consumer opposition to the technology in Europe remains strong.

MON810 is the only GM crop grown in Europe. A potato developed by BASF was granted approval in 2010, but the German company withdrew it in 2012.

(Reporting By Philip Blenkinsop; Editing by Ruth Pitchford)