WTO rules against EU on Genetically Modified Food

The World Trade Organization recently ruled that the European Union breached international rules by restricting imports of genetically modified crops and food made from them.

The decision, which was not made public but was discussed by U.S. trade officials, is a victory for the ag biotechnology industry, which has been struggling for years to get access for its products from consumers and governments in Europe and some other countries.

The ruling by a three-person panel at the WTO is not expected to lead to a flood into Europe of what are termed genetically modified foods. However, U.S. government and industry officials said it would help discourage other countries from adopting similar barriers and would set a precedent that countries must have sound scientific reasons for rejecting genetically modified crops. Some countries had feared they would lose exports to Europe if they were to grow the crops.

The ruling extended to about 800 pages, the longest ruling in the organization’s history.  United States, Canada and Argentina had filed a complaint against the European Union in 2003, claiming that a moratorium on approvals of genetically modified crops that Europe adopted in 1998 violated a food trade treaty that requires regulatory decisions to be made without “undue delay” and to be based on science.

Separately, the EU recently launched a web site to help educate consumers about biotech and biotech foods, online at www.gmo-compass.org.  The web site provides information about applications of biotech, safety research conducted and how research findings are assessed, breeding goals for biotech plants, how biotech plants are being used and their approval status in the EU, and biotech labeling and traceability regulations.