Court dismisses GMO case

An Accra Fast Track High Court has refused a request by the Food Sovereignty Ghana (FSG), a food advocacy organization to suspend the commercialisation of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) cowpeas and rice.

The High Court has therefore dismissed the suit filed against the National Biosafety Committee, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, and the Attorney General (A-G) over the commercialization of the GMO cereals.

the FSG was seeking an interim injunction to restrain the defendants from the release and commercialisation of the GMO cereals until the provisions of the Biosafety Act were expressly and fully obeyed.

The court presided over by Justice Dennis Adjei said on the scale of probability; the State and the Biosafety Authority were likely to face un-reparable damage, if the injunction was granted.

He said the court was of the view that the reliefs sought by the applicants had been taken care off in the Biosafety Act and the accompanying Legislative Instrument.

The Judge said the commerialisation of GMO in Ghana would not affect Ghanaians and even the applicants themselves.

He said the applicants would not suffer any damage when the application was not granted.

“I, therefore, dismiss the case…… without merits,” he added.