Agbiotech: the ethical dimension
Agrifood Awareness Australia Biotech Bulletin #14

INTRODUCTION

Australia’s gene technology regulatory system incorporates the area of ethics into the decision-making process
through the Gene Technology Ethics Committee (GTEC). This Committee has recently released for public
consultation a draft National Framework for the Development of Ethical Principles in Gene Technology.
Ethics, as it relates to gene technology, has been the focus of discussion in the past twelve months. Last
November, Agrifood Awareness Australia Limited hosted Professor Sandy Thomas, Director, Nuffield Council on
Bioethics in Canberra to address the topic “The role of ethics in the GM debate”. Australia also hosted the 7th World Congress of Bioethics in 2004. There is no doubt that awareness of these fields is growing and ethical issues surrounding gene technology are being explored more deeply than ever before but, what is ethics and bioethics; how are they relevant to the gene technology debate; and, how are they being incorporated into decision-making processes surrounding gene technology globally? This year, the Commonwealth and State and Territory Governments have launched a ‘bioethics portal’ which aims to be a gateway to information on Australia’s bioethics related activities and initiatives. Following is an overview of the processes in place in Australia to address the ethics of agriculture biotechnology, and an outline of the European approach, which in the area of consumer choice, contains certain similarities.

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