A decision was finally reached by Parties to the Cartegena Protocol on Biosafety (Biosafety Protocol) on the controversial issue of documentation requirements for shipments that may contain Living Modified Organisms (commonly referred to as GMOs) last Friday.  The 132 Parties to the Protocol reached a compromise following deliberations that lasted throughout Thursday night and continued into late Friday evening.
 
The Protocol calls on Parties to take measures to implement a global documentation system for shipments that may contain biotech products under Article 18.2.  Currently, an exporter of commodities destined for food, feed or processing that may contain biotech products must indicate that an export cargo “may contain” LMOs.  The new decision adds to this the requirement to include a list of the biotech events that may be contained in the shipment.
 
"We appreciate the efforts countries have gone through to reach a compromise decision and move on from this issue," stated Christian Verschueren, Director General, CropLife International.  "But we still have some concerns - most importantly, that many countries have not fully developed fundamental national biosafety regulations and may not be able to meet the requirements or properly use the list of biotech events that may be contained in their imports."
 
"We really encourage countries to look at how to implement this in a way that will actually protect biodiversity, without unduly inhibiting international trade," he continued.  "We believe the Biosafety Clearing-House (BCH) is a critical component of understanding and utilising this information."
 
The Biosafety Protocol, which was discussed in Curitiba, Brazil 13-17 March 2006, is an international treaty under the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and seeks to protect the world's biodioversity from any risks presented by biotechnology.
 
The BCH is an information exchange mechanism established by the Biosafety Protocol to assist Parties with implementation of the treaty’s provisions and to facilitate sharing of information on, and experiences with biotechnology.  It aims to assist governments to make informed decisions regarding the importation or release of biotech products in their borders.  The BCH can be accessed at http://bch.biodiv.org/.