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Define 'precautionary principle' to avoid clashes over biotechnology under World Trade rules

Biotechnology-altered foods are the focus of a World Trade Organization ruling scheduled for release this month, a landmark event expected to have a major impact on trade in agricultural products, one of the largest sectors governed by the WTO.

The final report of the WTO Panel in European Communities Measures Affecting the Approval and Marketing of Biotechnology Products rules on a dispute founded on differing perceptions about what constitutes legitimate precaution when regulating biotechnology.

Should a country have the unfettered right to refuse trade in such products as genetically-modified grain or hormone-injected beef based on doubts about their safety? Or is such "precautionary" action trumped by World Trade Organization membership obligations?

In other words: when can a nation's interpretation and invocation of "the precautionary principle" be ruled trade protectionism in disguise? And which party should shoulder the burden of scientific proof when the safety of a product is disagreed?

These concerns are prompting a growing number of international trade clashes over the perceived safety of products derived from cutting edge biotechnology and other sciences. Most recently, Japan banned imports of US long-grain rice in August amid reports that traces of a genetically-modified variety had been found in American crops; European Union officials likewise imposed a temporary import ban pending more information. In earlier clashes, Zambia refused a US-AID offer of GM corn over concerns that acceptance would imperil the GM-free status of their exports to the EU. The collapse of the Doha Round means that more of these types of clashes are likely to end up in the WTO.

Averting such conflicts requires a better, common definition and understanding of the "precautionary principle," among other measures, according to the Japan-based Institute for Advanced Studies of the United Nations University. In a repo
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Contact: Terry Collins
terrycollins@rogers.com
416-538-8712
United Nations University
14-Sep-2006


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