Dow Jones | December 1, 1999
SEATTLE - French officials Wednesday said they are opposed to the European Union's support for creating a working group on biotechnology issues within the World Trade Organization.
"We are firmly against a working group on biotechnology at the WTO," said French Environment Minister Dominique Voynet. "To accept a working group would be a disastrous signal," she said.
France's position is in direct contrast to the E.U. stance. On Monday, E.U. Agriculture Commissioner Franz Fischler said "We're not against the idea" of a working group on biotech issues.
Karl Falkenberg, a senior E.U. Commission trade official, acknowledged the difference, but added that the E.U.'s first priority is that talks on a Biosafety Protocol are completed at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
"We won't stand in the way of a working group," Falkenberg said. "But we don't want a delay to the talks underway on biosafety. We need to conclude these talks."
Voynet said that she supports talks on biotechnology in the framework of the Biosafety Protocol negotiations, which are expected to conclude next year.
The E.U. Commission-French rift shows how sensitive biotech issues are in Europe, where citizens have strongly opposed the approval of products that contain genetically modified organisms, or GMOs.
Public concerns about the safety of GMOs, following recent food-safety scandals such as the U.K.'s "mad cow" disease and dioxin-contaminated food in Belgium, have led European politicians to halt GMO approvals.
The U.S. is frustrated with the E.U.'s de facto moratorium on approving new GMOs, arguing that U.S. companies such as agribusiness company Monsanto Co. have been prevented from selling their products in Europe.
More than half of the U.S. soybean and nearly as much corn grown in 1999 were genetically modified. The U.S. exported $61 billion in farm goods in 1997, according to the OECD.
A total of 18 genetically-modified products are currently in use throughout the E.U., with 13 others awaiting approval.
A combination of political resistance, scientific uncertainty, consumer distrust and a lack of a clear E.U. regulatory process have led to the current moratorium, say biotechnology industry officials.
Falkenberg said that "it's hard to understand why the WTO can't include" talks on biotechnology. He added that the working group could include talks on the use of the precautionary principle.
The WTO's Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement, which spells out the use of the precautionary principle, states that food safety regulations must be based on science and not on factors such as consumer preference. Countries can block the import of products based on health and environmental concerns, but scientific studies are needed to justify the ban.
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