法國綠色和平組織在網站上刊登南部一座商業種植基改玉米農場的地理位置資訊，但法院26日下令綠色和平刪除網站上相關資訊。為了抗議法院判決，綠色和平組織27日出擊，派出一組人員在田中畫出一個大大的圓形符號（crop circle），再加上一個大大的「叉」在中心。綠色和平此舉，是為了凸顯該農地為受到污染的區域。
法國綠色和平組織的阿伯特蓋（Arnaud Apoteker）表示：「既然現在禁止我們在網站上公布基改玉米的地圖，那麼我們就到玉米田裡去，標示真實的記號。」
雖然標示法國基改農作玉米田的地圖已經從該組織的網站上撤下，不過現在卻可以在綠色和平組織的國際網站上找到。這幅地圖也將透過電子郵件傳送給全世界數百萬人。
根據歐盟2001/18關於基因改造生物體的指令（Directive 2001/18），歐盟成員國有義務經營一個公開的訊息平台，列出基改農田的地點，讓一般民眾可以查詢。但是法國政府尚未將該指令內國法化。綠色和平組織聲稱法國藉由隱瞞基改穀物生產農場地點的資訊，剝奪該國人民得知相關資訊，以保護自身，避免一般食品或有機食品遭基改作物污染的風險。
另外，歐盟執委會曾對「歐洲地球之友」隱瞞一份科學報告文件，該報告顯示了基因改造食品在科學層面上的安全疑慮──之後執委會遭裁定有「行政疏失」之責。這項官方裁決由歐洲監察使在7月17日發布。
前述的歐盟執委會所隱匿的科學報告，和歐洲共同體與美國、加拿大、阿根廷三國在世界貿易組織（WTO）的爭端有關。美、加、阿三國向WTO提起爭端訴訟，認為歐盟對基改作物採取預警原則（precautionary approach）的政策形成貿易障礙。
地球之友基因轉殖食品專案成員貝伯（Adrian Bebb）表示：「基改食物在歐洲是敏感議題──多數人完全反對基改食物。將討論基改食物安全問題的相關文件藏匿起來對大眾來說實在是幫了倒忙。」
歐盟執委員會最後終於在2005年2月將這份爭議性文件交付給歐洲地球之友。
這份文件從科學角度提出了基因轉殖食物和穀物的長期性安全問題。同樣也在今年初交付歐洲地球之友的更多文件，則是更詳盡描述這些議題，其中也警告不能排除「食用基改食物可能導致癌症和過敏症」的可能性，並且建議在尚未確定食用基改穀物的長期後果之前，不應繼續種植。
Early this morning a group of Greenpeace activists entered a field of genetically engineered maize, or corn, in southern France and carved a giant "crop circle" with an "X" in the field. The action, taken to mark the field as a contamination zone, was in response to a ruling by a French court yesterday. The court ordered Greenpeace France to remove from its website maps showing the location of commercial fields of genetically engineered maize in France.
"As we are now forbidden to publish these maps of GE maize on our webpage, we have gone into the fields and marked it for real," said Arnaud Apoteker of Greenpeace France.
Although the map showing the French genetically engineered maize fields has been removed from the website of Greenpeace France it is now available at: greenpeace.org. The map will also be distributed via email so that it will be available to millions of people around the world.
The EU legislation (Directive 2001/18) that deals with genetically engineered organisms shows how EU member states are obliged to maintain public registers in order to inform their citizens about the locations of genetically engineered fields.
But the French government has yet to make the EU's directive into national law. Greenpeace contends that by withholding information about the location of gene-altered crops, France is depriving its citizens of information they need to protect themselves against the risk of genetically engineered contamination of conventional and organic food.
Meanwhile, the European Commission has been ruled guilty of "maladministration" after hiding documents from Friends of the Earth Europe that reveal scientific concerns about the safety of genetically modified foods. The official ruling was announced by the European Ombudsman July 17.
The documents concerned related to the European Communities dispute at the WTO, in which the United States, Argentina and Canada claimed that Europe's precautionary approach on genetically engineered foods was a barrier to trade.
Adrian Bebb, transgenic foods campaigner for Friends of the Earth Europe said, "Genetically modified foods are a sensitive issue in Europe - most people are totally against them. Keeping papers that discuss their safety secret is a disservice to the public."
The European Commission eventually released the documents in question to Friends of the Earth Europe in February 2005.
The papers outlined scientific concerns about the long term safety of transgenic foods and crops.
Further papers, also released to Friends of the Earth Europe earlier this year, outlined these concerns in more detail, warning that cancer and allergies caused by eating genetically engineered foods cannot be ruled out and recommending that these crops should not be grown until their long-term effects are known.
