13. 7. 96 Official Journal of the European Communities No L 175/25 (Acts whose publication is not obligatory) COMMISSION COMMISSION DECISION of 20 May 1996 concerning the placing on the market of genetically modified male sterile chicory (Cichorium fntybus L.) with partial tolerance to the herbicide glufosinate ammonium pursuant to Council Directive 90/220/EEC (Text with EEA relevance) (96/424/EC) THE COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES, Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Community, Having regard to Council Directive 90/220/EEC of 23 April 1990 on the deliberate release into the environment of genetically modified organisms ('), as last amended by Commission Directive 94/15/EC (3, and in particular Article 13 thereof, Whereas, in accordance with Article 10 to 18 of Directive 90/220/EEC, there is a Community procedure enabling the competent authority of a Member State to give consent to the placing on the market of products consist- ing of genetically modified organisms; Whereas, a notification concerning the placing on the market of such a product has been submitted to the competent authorities of a Member State (The Nether- lands); Whereas, the competent authority of the Netherlands has subsequently forwarded the dossier thereon to the Commission with a favourable opinion; whereas the competent authorities of other Member States have raised objections to the said dossier; Whereas, therefore, in accordance with Article 13 (3), the Commission is required to take a decision in accordance ] No L 117, 8. 5. 1990, p. 15. () OJ No L 103, 22. 4. 1994, p. 20. with the procedure provided for in Article 21 of Directive 90/220/EEC; Whereas, the Commission having examined each of the objections raised in light of the scope of Directive 90/220/EEC and the information submitted in the dossier has reached the following conclusions: — there is no reason to believe that there will be any adverse effects from the transfer of the bar gene to wild chicory populations given the fact that such transfer could only confer a competitive or selective advantage to wild populations if the herbicide glufo- sinate-ammonium were the only means of controlling these populations, which is not the case, — the consent to the placing on the market of the product should not cover its use as human food or animal feed since the submitted notification does not cover these aspects, — there are no safety reasons for mentioning on the label that the product has been obtained by genetic modification techniques, — since 50 % of the hybrid seeds are tolerant to the herbicide, the label should mention that the product may be tolerant to the herbicide glufosinate- ammonium, so that breeders become aware that it may not be possible to control volunteers by glufo- sinate ammonium; Whereas the authorization of chemical herbicides applied to plants and the assessment of the impact of their use on human health and the environment falls within the scope of Council Directive 91/414/EEC of July 1991 concern-