Reports surfaced Thursday that the European Commission is considering a policy that would allow member states to “opt-out� of importing food and feed products containing biotechnology events approved by the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA).
If enacted, a national opt-out for import approvals of biotechnology-derived products for food and feed uses would be disruptive and counter to international obligations under the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The EU food and feed markets are highly integrated, and the EU’s nominal goal has long been a common market based on transparent, scientific standards and a high-integrity regulatory system. National opt-outs would also result in fragmentation of the internal market for imported commodities and pose a serious threat to the principle of a single market.
The importation opt-out proposal is the latest concern about the EU’s stance toward biotechnology. The Commission has undertaken a de facto moratorium on the approval of new biotechnology events since November 2013, with 13 EFSA-approved events now awaiting final approval by the Commission despite having long ago passed all scientific tests. These events have been pending for 69 months and counting on average despite EU laws and regulations that stipulate an 18-month time period for a decision.
“The EU continues to practice a de facto moratorium on biotech approvals, contrary to its obligations under international law,� said U.S. Grains Council Chairman Ron Gray, a farmer from Illinois.
“It is important to emphasize that we are discussing events that have been tested and approved not only by ESFA, the EU’s own scientific watchdog, but also by the U.S. and other major import markets like Japan, Canada, Taiwan and Mexico that have sophisticated regulatory systems with high scientific integrity.�
Important elements of the EU agriculture value chain are warning that the balance of their food and feed supply is threatened when regulation is not science-based or timely. Experience has demonstrated that undue delays in market authorizations for biotech events result in higher costs along the EU value chain – including for EU consumers – which undermines the economic growth and competitiveness of the EU food, feed, breeding and livestock sectors.
“The question is simply whether Europe wants to have a functioning, science-based system and will respect its own laws and treaty obligations, or will it allow political pressure to trump everything else,� Gray said.