Archived press release

Leaked WTO report: US misled the world on "victory"

28 February 2006

WTO ruling does not prevent countries from restricting or banning GMOs

Friends of the Earth today made available online a confidential World Trade Organisation (WTO) ruling on the trade dispute on genetically modified (GM) foods [1].

The 1000-page report, distributed earlier this month only to the countries involved in the dispute, was leaked to Friends of the Earth, which has published a preliminary analysis [2].

The leaked report reveals that:

• Despite claims of victory by the US Administration and the biotechnology industry -widely reported in the media in February 2006 - the three countries that started the trade dispute against the European Union (US, Canada and Argentina) failed to win most of their arguments;

• The World Trade Organisation did not rule on two of the most important questions before it, namely whether GM foods are effectively the same as non-GM foods, and if they are safe.

Friends of the Earth International GM Campaign Coordinator Juan Lopez said:

"The WTO ruling is no victory for the US administration and the biotech giants. Countries around the world should continue to enforce tough legislation protecting their citizens and the environment from the risks of genetically modified crops."

Friends of the Earth Director Tony Juniper said:

"The conclusions of the WTO panel have been spun out of all recognition by the US Government, and the UK Government has done nothing to counter the US line. This WTO ruling was not a victory for the US or the GM industry. The UK Government should stand up for the interests of UK citizens who have consistently said no to GM. It is time they stopped acting as an advocate for the GM industry and showed more respect for the views of the UK public."

According to Friends of the Earth International the WTO is not and should not be the appropriate body to deal with conflicts between trade rules and environmental protection since it ignores the internationally recognised `Precautionary Principle' and considers only trade principles.

The leaked WTO report argues that:

• Europe's four-year moratorium on GM Organisms (GMOs) only broke trade rules because it caused "undue delay" in the approval of new GM foods. The WTO dismissed eight other complaints in relation to the moratorium, and did not recommend any further action, since the moratorium ended in 2004.

• There was also an "undue delay" in the EU's approval procedures for over 20 specified biotech products. However, eleven other claims of the complainants related to the product-specific EU measures were dismissed by the WTO Panel.

• National bans by EU member states broke trade rules because the risk assessments used by the countries in question did not comply with the WTO requirements;

Friends of the Earth Europe GMO Campaigner Adrian Bebb said:

"This is the report that the WTO didn't want the public to see. It reveals that the big corporations that stand behind the WTO failed to get the big win they were hoping for. Free trade proponents needed a clear victory in this dispute to be able to push governments in the EU and the developing world to accept genetically modified food. They failed and now is the time to build a consensus that the WTO, with its business-only agenda, is the wrong place to decide on what people eat and how we protect our environment."

Friends of the Earth launched an online action today calling on the Government to reject the WTO as a forum to decide on environmental trade disputes and to support the right of countries to ban GM food.

Notes

[1] The WTO report is available online at

www.foei.org/media/2006/WTO_report_descriptive.pdf (PDF)

www.foei.org/media/2006/WTO_report_findings.pdf (PDF†)

[2] The Friends of the Earth preliminary analysis is online at www.foei.org/media/2006/WTO_briefing.pdf (PDF†)

†To view PDF files you will need to download Adobe Acrobat Reader. Visually impaired users can get extra help with these documents from access.adobe.com.

If you're a journalist looking for press information please contact the Friends of the Earth media team on 020 7566 1649.

Published by Friends of the Earth Trust