The United States and European Union Transatlantic and Trade Investment Partnership (T-TIP) are holding their third round of negotiations this week in Washington, D.C. Negotiators on either side are trying to find enough common ground so that early next year they can go beyond conceptual discussions on new rules and start laying down proposals for discussion and negotiation.
Earlier this year, the U.S. Grains Council provided presentations in two different stakeholder panels and has advocated for a more streamlined and efficient EU biotechnology authorization system with data requirements and approval timeframes that are more in line with the United States and other comparable government systems.
The Council has begun a series of separate meetings with select EU countries, such as the Netherlands, that are also supportive of streamlining the EU biotech regulatory structure. With the assistance of the Council’s Biotechnology and Trade Policy Advisory Teams, the Council and meeting participants will finalize a strategy to actively participate in future T-TIP negotiation sessions that are expected to extend through all of 2014. The Council will also request further discussions with U.S. Trade Representative and U.S. Department of Agriculture to coordinate efforts with their negotiating strategy and expected outcomes on resolving the biotechnology and other sanitary and phytosanitary trade barriers.