UPDATE 1-EU experts fail to decide on GMO maize approval

(Adds details, Dow statement, background)

BRUSSELS Feb 9 (Reuters) - A European Union scientific committee failed to reach agreement on Tuesday over whether to approve three genetically modified (GMO) maize crops for import, an EU official said.

The applications will now be sent to EU ministers for a decision.

"There was no qualified majority for or against" their approval, the official said. Thirteen EU states had voted in favour of approval while 10 voted against, with three abstentions and one absent, she said.

Under the 27-nation bloc's complex system of voting, this created a stalemate.

Two of the GMO maize types, 59122x1507xNK603 and 1507x59122, were jointly developed by subsidiaries of U.S. chemical companies DuPont (DD.N) and Dow Chemical (DOW.N). The third, MON88017xMON810, was developed by seed giant Monsanto (MON.N).

Dow AgroSciences, a division of Dow Chemical, said it was disappointed by the outcome.

"These products have been shown to be safe by regulatory bodies around the world, including the EFSA (Europe's food safety watchdog), and are urgently needed by EU livestock producers," the company said in statement.

Approval of genetically modified organisms for import, feed or cultivation in the European Union has been slow due to public safety concerns and become a point of diplomatic tension.

If the ministers also fail to agree, EU law permits the bloc's executive arm to make a decision. Since 2004, a string of GMO products, nearly all maize, have been approved in this way.

The incoming executive European Commission will be looking at new proposals aimed at tackling the deadlock and speeding up the approval process. [ID:nLDE6120A4] (Reporting by Bate Felix and Charlie Dunmore, editing by Dale Hudson)