The Polish government has banned cultivation of certain genetically modified (GM) strains of maize and potatoes, according to a government statement on January 2.

The ban, which will take effect on January 28, uses a legal loophole to circumvent the EU's acceptance of such products.

Polish PM Donald Tusk had vowed to ban GM crops in November on the heels of a Senate upper house’s approval for the registration and sale of GM crops, which had been banned in Poland until then.