By Matt Sepic, KWMU
St. Louis – The European Union Tuesday approved the sale of food derived from a variety of genetically-modified corn.
The news is good for St. Louis-based Monsanto, which developed the plant.
GM crops have been part of the American diet for years. But their use in Europe has stalled because of fears about safety.
The European Commission has deemed Monsanto's NK-603 corn safe. But any products containing it have to be labeled as such.
University of Illinois agribusiness professor Peter Goldsmith says whether consumers buy it is anyone's guess.
"The initial response is that they would avoid GM products if it were labeled as such," Goldsmith said. "But if there were a price differential, meaning that if the product was cheaper, would they purchase it? I don't think people know the answer to that yet."
The EU rule only allows the sale of the product. European farmers still can't grow it. Goldsmith says American farmers will probably grow more of the corn as a result.