Ag Policy Blog

The EU is Endlessly Unpredictable on Biotechnology

Chris Clayton
By  Chris Clayton , DTN Ag Policy Editor
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European Union officials did a good job of creating uncertainty and confusion this week. First, the European Union issued a proposal allowing its member states to opt-out of EU rules on import and use of biotech products.

Then the same commission went ahead and approved 17 biotech traits for import, some of which had been pending before the EU for more than five years.

Agricultural groups in the U.S. were left scratching their heads.

Richard Wilkins, first vice-president of the American Soybean Association and a soybean farmer from Greenwood, Delaware, noted the association’s "guarded optimism" about the EU's approval of biotech products, including soybeans with the high-oleic oil traits.

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“Whenever our technology partners bring a new trait to market, farmers in the U.S. aren’t able to fully recognize the benefits of products with those traits until they are accepted in all of our key export markets, so this is a big, big step forward," Wilkins said.

Wilkins added that ASA was pleased with the announcement on high-oleic soybeans, which will eliminate the need for partial hydrogenation that produces trans fats. Additionally, dicamba-tolerant soybeans will give soybean farmers another tool to prevent and manage weed resistance in their fields, ASA stated.

“On the other hand, however, this announcement means little if the EU persists in its current unscientific and delayed approval process for new varieties developed through biotechnology. Today more than 40 additional GM applications for import, submitted by various companies, remain pending in the EU system," Wilkins said.

ASA added that the EU Commission proposal on the "opt-out" would be a giant step backwards and likely also is a clear violation of the EU's obligations under the World Trade Organization.

Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) said news of the biotech approvals "is greatly overshadowed" by the opt-out proposal. BIO said the EU would effectively allow European countries to ignore scientific consensus, which would translate into a WTO issue.

“This proposal adds a third layer to the already lengthy and uncertain European approval process,” says Jim Greenwood, BIO President and CEO. “This undermines international scientific consensus, Europe’s obligations under the WTO and arbitrarily shuts off European consumers from accessing healthy, affordable and quality agricultural commodities from the United States and other major supplying nations. This is a major step backwards in U.S.-EU trade relations and represents a complete lack of transparency.”

The American Farm Bureau carried much the same theme. Farm Bureau "praised" the European Commission for its biotech approvals "in the face of fierce opposition by anti-science and anti-trade forces on the continent."

However, the EU is "undercutting its own authority" and "now runs the risk of violating its international trade obligations, undermining the role of science, and jeopardizing the foundation of the single market in Europe," Farm Bureau stated.

"Nationalizing the EU decision-making process would fragment the single European market. If adopted, this proposal would hinder intra-European trade, leading to higher feed prices, a weaker livestock industry and an overall decrease in consumer welfare," Farm Bureau added.

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