Hungary's government will penalize planting and distribution of genetically modified (GMO) seeds with fines of up to HUF 2 billion (€7.5 million), government spokesman Zoltán Kovács said at a press conference on Tuesday.
Kovács said the government will refund any damages caused to farmers by recently discovered GMO seed planting.
By July 21, officials had found more than 5,000 hectares of land sown with GMO seeds, mostly corn, and ordered the destruction of crops, state secretary of the Rural Development Ministry Endre Kardeván said last week.
Hungary insists on maintain its GMO-free status and will take strict measures to keep it that way, Kardeván added.
