87 Countries Agree to New International Protections
from Genetic Contamination
In an agreement reached this February, 87 countries took concrete steps toward establishing new internationally-recognized rights to protect public health, sustainable agriculture and the environment from contamination caused by international trade in genetically engineered organisms.

"Although the steps taken were modest—addressing liability, labeling and information-sharing related to the international shipping of GE organisms," said IATP's Dennis Olson, "the consensus reached by the parties to the Cartegena Protocol on Biosafety represented a sharp rebuff to the Bush Administration's intensive behind-the-scenes lobbying efforts to undermine the treaty." Olson attended the meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The Biosafety Protocol guarantees member nations' rights to take precautionary regulatory approaches on genetically engineered organisms pursuant to the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity. The Protocol strengthens countries' legal standing to prevent unapproved GE organisms from illegally entering farm fields, the environment and food supplies. The U.S., which has not ratified the treaty, is attempting to override some of the rights established in the Biosafety Protocol through a legal case at the World Trade Organization.

Find more details on the Biosafety Protocol meeting at tradeobservatory.org.

Widespread Ag Dumping from U.S. Food Companies Continues,
New Analysis Finds
According to a new IATP analysis released in February, U.S. multinational food companies are continuing a decade-long trend of dumping five major agricultural export commodities onto world markets. Dumping is exporting commodities at prices below their cost of production.

The U.S. is one of the world's largest sources of dumped agricultural commodities. IATP's updated analysis is based on the most recent numbers available (2002). It provides dumping calculations from 1990 to 2002 for wheat, corn (maize), soybean, rice and cotton. The findings conclude that in 2002:

• Wheat was exported at an average price of 43 percent below cost of production.
• Soybeans were exported at an average price of 25 percent below cost of production.
• Corn was exported at an average price of 13 percent below cost of production.
• Cotton was exported at an average price of 61 percent below cost of production.
• Rice was exported at an average price of 35 percent below cost of production.

The analysis makes several recommendations for immediate action on agricultural dumping. First, the elimination of visible export subsidies as well as the establishment of strong disciplines on export credit and food aid. Second, a commitment from exporting countries to keep products priced below the cost of production out of world markets. Third, the annual publication of full cost-of-production estimates for Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. Finally, agreement on strong international rules to prohibit restrictive business practices among the oligopolies that dominate trade in most agricultural commodities.

Progress on agricultural dumping at the World Trade Organization seems unlikely as countries remain deadlocked over agricultural negotiations. Another opportunity to address agricultural dumping will take place in June when the United Nations Committee on Trade and Development meets in São Paulo, Brazil. UNCTAD has historically focused directly on promoting development through trade. It has also been home to global commodity agreements attempting to address chronic oversupply, such as the coffee agreement.

IATP's full report, United States Dumping on World Agricultural Markets, and latest analysis can be found at tradeobservatory.org.

Escaping the WTO Box, UNCTAD XI
WTO negotiations are locked in an intractable stalemate largely because its liberalized, free trade model has failed to improve the lives of people around the world. Now governments, NGOs and businesses are looking for alternative models for trade that promote sustainable development. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development has been doing just that for the last 40 years.

When UNCTAD holds its 11th meeting this June, it will provide a fresh alternative to the flawed WTO model by examining the critical role of fair trade rules to address hunger, the global farm crisis of commodities, supply management, international markets and economic development.

At a Feb. 23 UNCTAD hearing in Geneva, IATP submitted testimony outlining why it believes the upcoming UNCTAD XI meeting in São Paulo, Brazil, is important and what needs to happen to make it successful.

IATP has launched a new Web page to provide news and analysis about UNCTAD XI. To find out more, go to iatp.org/unctadxi.

Pressure Builds against Genetically Engineered Wheat
In February, 27 organizations formally endorsed a legal petition asking the Bush Administration for a thorough analysis and public review of the social, economic and environmental impacts of allowing genetically engineered wheat onto markets. The groups represented diverse constituencies, from the Minnesota Farmers Union to the Center for Food Safety to the Organic Trade Association to the National Catholic Rural Live Conference to the Intertribal Agriculture Council.

The groups signed a legal addendum supporting the original petition filed last March by Northern Plains' wheat farmers. The petition argues the the National Environmentla Policy Act legally obligates the U.S. Department of Agriculture to conduct a full environmental impact statement (EIS) on Monsanto's pending application to deregulate and commercially release genetically engineered hard red spring wheat. USDA has never required an EIS for decisions to release GE crop varieties, but wheat farmers and their allies have demanded a more thorough public review of the potential impacts of GE wheat introduction.

To read the EIS petition, the full list of signatories, the addendum cover letter (including descriptions of the new agronomic studies on GE wheat) and a study of the impacts of GE wheat introduction, go to iatp.org.

New Report Documents Efforts to Privatize Ocean for Fish Farming
The aquaculture industry is working along with U.S. regulatory agencies to privatize parts of the ocean on behalf of corporate fish farming interests, according to a new report by a coalition of consumer and environmental groups.

Open ocean aquaculture (OOA) is the practice of fish farming three to 200 miles off the U.S. coast. The report found that various government agencies—most notably National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries as well as Sea Grant programs and private companies—are aggressively pursuing OOA development.

Currently there are experimental and demonstration offshore fish operations in Alabama, Mississippi, Florida, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Puerto Rico and Texas. Fish involved in these projects are high-value species including red drum, amberjack, summer flounder, cod, halibut, red snapper and cobia. Commercial operations are already underway in Hawaii and Puerto Rico.

The report outlines possible environmental risks associated with offshore aquaculture including fish escapes, transference of disease to wild fish, discharge of sewage and unsustainable use of marine resources.

"By law, the sea and seabed are 'held in the public trust,' and 'conveyance of exclusive private use rights' is not allowed," said Dr. Mike Skladany, IATP's Marine and Fish Conservation Program Director.

"Altering this precedent could open up similar opportunities to a raft of competing corporate interests," he said. "Oil and gas drilling, sub-sea mining, abandonment of oil rigs, waste disposal and commercial rocket launching are just some of the activities that would benefit from such a redefinition, and there is mounting evidence that a wholesale privatization of the continental shelf, may be in the offing."

The report was authored by the Offshore Aquaculture Working Group, which includes Ben Belton, Mike Skladany and Anne Mosness, Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, Minneapolis, and Jeremy Brown, Food and Society Policy Fellow, Bellingham, Washington. Read the executive summary and full report at iatp.org/fish.

More Questions Raised by Mad Cow Discovery
The discovery of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or mad cow disease, on a Washington farm in December has set off a serious review of U.S. food safety regulations. At a January press conference in Washington, DC, a coalition of organizations called on the U.S. Department of Agriculture to give meat inspectors more training and power to protect public health from mad cow disease.

The groups charged that frontline meat inspectors have little to no training in identifying BSE symptoms, and that meatpackers and producers are part of a voluntary, unscientific surveillance program with little oversight or management. The coalition, including IATP's Steve Suppan, briefed Senate and House staffers in March on gaps in the U.S. food safety system relative to mad cow.

In addition to IATP, the coalition includes Public Citizen, the Government Accountability Project and the Community Nutrition Institute. For more details about mad cow, go to IATP's mad cow page at agobservatory.org/madcow.

Don Arnosti Joins IATP's Forestry Program
IATP is pleased to announce the addition of Minnesota environmental leader Don Arnosti as the director of the Forestry Program. Don brings nearly two decades of experience as a leader in the protection of Minnesota's environment and the promotion of sustainable forestry and forest products in Minnesota.

"We are especially pleased to have Don joining our team now to give added strength to our work developing family forestry opportunities and marketing of Forest Stewardship Council-certified forest products" said Mark Ritchie, President of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. "IATP will greatly benefit from Don's years of experience as leader of the Audubon Society and from his training in biology, geology, and forestry. His wide range of professional training and experience combined with his strong entrepreneurial and marketing skills will help take our work promoting sustainable forest management and forest-related products to a new level."

Over the past 15 years, Don has held a number of leadership positions with Minnesota conservation organizations, including serving for ten years as executive director of the National Audubon Society's Minnesota office. In 2000, Don left Audubon to take his family on a one-year sabbatical to Argentina, where he worked with local environmental educators and advocates.

"We are pleased to have Don on our team, given his many years of work to develop and introduce third-party forest certification to the Upper Great Lakes states," said Katie Fernholz, IATP forester, state chair of the Minnesota Society of American Foresters Association and member of the Minnesota Forest Resources Council.

Don will direct IATP's Forestry Program and be involved with a number of Midwest environmental initiatives. He can be reached at darnosti@iatp.org.

National Voice Summit Calls for a Resurgence of Democracy
Attracting nonprofit organizations from around the country supporting the environment, labor, rural life, women, the arts, communities of color and faith communities, the National Voice summit presented a variety of strategies to spark citizen involvement in the 2004 elections.

The summit, held March 15 and 16 in Washington, DC, included discussions about constituency-based organizing, online organizing and tools, ballot initiatives, voting rights, reaching rural voters and message communication.

IATP and IATPAction attended the summit. National Voice is a coalition of nonprofit and community groups working to maximize public participation on the democratic process. National Voice will be working with organizations to incorporate voter registration, education and get-out-the-vote activities.

For more information, go to nationalvoice.org.

Minnesota Bill Would Ban Toxic Flame Retardants
A bill introduced in the Minnesota legislature this session would ban certain toxic flame retardants that are accumulating in the environment, in fish and even in breast milk. The bill would require phase out of three common types of PBDE flame retardants used in a variety of products. There are no manufacturers of these chemicals in Minnesota and safe cost-effective alternatives are available.

PBDE (polybrominated diphenyl ethers) flame retardants are used in foam products, plastics, textiles, lubricants, electrical equipment, building materials and transportation. These chemicals have accumulated in the environment, in fish and meats, in breast milk and in humans. PBDEs have been detected in fish, sediment, sewage sludge and landfill leachates in Minnesota. Over the past 30 years, PBDE levels in the human body and in breast milk have increased by a factor of 100.

"It is alarming that levels of PBDEs in U.S. women's breast milk continue to rise. Recent studies show they are ten to 100 times higher than in European women," says Kathleen Schuler, MPH, Public Health Scientist at IATP.

For more information on PBDEs and the Minnesota bill, go to iatp.org/foodandhealth.

Renewing the Countryside: North Dakota Now Available
Renewing the Countryside: North Dakota is the most recent in a series of books featuring farmers, entrepreneurs and communities revitalizing the rural landscape. The North Dakota book was published by the Great Plains Institute of Sustainable Development and Northern Great Plains, Inc. Previous books, with IATP as a co-publisher, have documented this movement in Minnesota and Iowa.

To order any of the Renewing the Countryside books, go to rtcmarket.org.

IATP News is an occasional publication reporting on recent events and activities at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP). It is sent to board members, supporters, partners and friends. If you want to learn more about any particular item or if you do not want to receive this newsletter, send email to Communications Coordinator Ben Lilliston at blilliston@iatp.org or call: 612-870-3416. Your comments and suggestions are appreciated.

Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP)
Mark Ritchie, President
2105 First Avenue South Minneapolis, Minnesota 55404 USA
Tel. 1 (612) 870-0453 Fax. 1 (612) 870-4846
Email: iatp@iatp.org Web: iatp.org