GMO Ruling Delights US Farmers but Hurdles Remain
Date: 08-Feb-06
Country: USA
Author: Sophie Walker
The World Trade Organization ruled that the European Union applied a moratorium on approving genetically modified organisms (GMO’s) in violation of trade rules, diplomats said.
In a preliminary decision, the WTO also ruled that six individual states - France, Germany, Austria, Italy, Luxembourg and Greece - broke the rules by applying their own bans on marketing and importing GMO’s.
"We're very pleased. It really helps answer a lot of questions in the world trade environment," said Len Corzine, president of the National Corn Growers Association.
"We don't expect the EU to become big importers of US corn, but it cast a big shadow across other nations. This is a message to the world that (we) won't put up with the EU violating the rules."
The United States, Canada and Argentina brought the WTO complaint against the EU, arguing that its moratorium on GMO approvals hurt their exports and was not based on science.
"It shows that science has prevailed, which is a good step forward, and ... is going to prevent other countries from undertaking a similar kind of moratorium," said Michelle Gorman, director of regulatory relations at the American Farm Bureau.
"There will be some relief for trade," said Gorman, adding that she had not seen the 1,000-page report, which US administration officials and lawyers were still poring over.
EXPORTS BLOCKED
The European Union's action effectively blocked up to $300 million of US agricultural exports annually, said Sean Darragh, executive vice president for food and agriculture at the Biotechnology Industry Organization.
The ruling sends a strong message to other countries considering their own regulations regarding biotech crops, said one industry source with government experience.
"It will be a valuable case for the US government in protecting the rights of its exporters around the world - there will be an immediate impact on the regulatory environment of biotech," the source said.
"It would have been bad news for the US if it had lost because biotech regulations are in a state of flux around the world. This shows that WTO rules apply and that countries have to operate science-based regulating principles."
But few farmers will be holding their breath for immediate results, be they material changes in EU regulations or new shipments of US crops.
Several sources said they expected the EU to appeal, and added that the unwinding of its current system was more complicated than just opening up the pipelines for more GMO applications.
"EU regulations are more complex than the moratorium - there's also traceability and labeling regulations," said Gorman at the American Farm Bureau.
And regardless of the ruling, there are still differences of opinion between US and EU consumers that American farmers have to overcome, one expert noted. European Union consumers are much more wary of genetically modified foods.
"The outcome here is a victory for the principles of international trade ... but part of the opposition to the food is not strictly about the safety of the foods," said Calestous Juma, professor of international development at Harvard University.
"There are some deeper ... differences between the EU and the United States."
(Additional reporting by Mark Weinraub in Chicago)
