WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/SPS/GEN/186
21 June 2000
(00-2518)
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures Original:  English
NATIONAL REGULATORY MEASURES RELATED TO TRADE IN
AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD PRODUCTS MODIFIED
BY MODERN BIOTECHNOLOGY
Submission by the United States
1. The United States draws attention of the Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures
to notifications concerning agricultural and food products derived from modern biotechnology.
Members have utilized the transparency procedures to notify under both the Technical Barriers to
Trade Agreement  (TBT) and the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary
Measures (SPS) to indicate their intention to modify national rules for products derived from modern
biotechnology.
2. Our review indicates a total of 48 notifications from 1 January 1995 through 10 June 2000,
which includes a revision and some identical measures notified by more than one country and/or
under both Agreements ( Table 1 ).  These notifications were submitted by 15 different Members.  The
48 total consists of 24 proposed measures notified under the SPS Agreement and 24 technical
regulations submitted for review under the TBT Agre ement.  The following represents the distribution
of notifications between the two agreements from 1995 until 10 June 2000.
Table 1
Year SPS TBT Totals
1995 3 1 4
1996 6 0 6
1997 1  4 5
1998 5 1 6
1999 4 12 16
2000
(10 June)56 1 1
Totals 24 24 48
3. Increasingly, Members are undertaking efforts to implement national rules for products traded
internationally and derived from modern biotechnology.  Proposed biotechnology regulations under
respective transparency articles of each of these two agreements (SPS and TBT) increased
significantly in 1999.  Notified proposals span a wide variety of regulatory requirements from seeking
input on draft risk assessments, to establishment of labeling and documentation requirements tooutright product and process bans.  It is also noteworthy that some Members have well-advanced
regulatory considerations or requirements not yet notified under either SPS or TBT Committees.G/SPS/GEN/186
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4. Transparency in regulatory decision-making processes and obtaining the most benefits from
international transparency obligations is of great importance to the United States.  The opportunity for
interested parties to review, comment or seek greater clarification on Members’ proposals is crucial.
Important opportunities to effectively and appropriately enhance trade and protect human, animal or
plant life or health can be lost without notification of  these measures and their underlying scientificand technical bases.
5. The development of useful international standards related to agricultural and food products
derived from modern biotechnology is underway in various Committees of the Codex Alimentarius
Commission and the International Plant Protection C onvention.  The United States strongly supports
these international standards development activities and urges all Members to actively contribute to
these recognized international standards bodies under the SPS Agreement.
Table 2
(Sorted by Type and Date)
Type WTO No. Country Date
(dd/mm/yy)Product Covered
SPS USA/15 United States of
America05/09/1995 Genetically engineered plants
SPS USA/15/Rev1 United States of
America12/09/1995 Genetically engineered plants
SPS JPN/7 Japan 06/11/1995 Food and food additives produced by
recombinant DNA techniques
SPS MEX/97 Mexico 23/01/1996 Organisms manipulated by genetic engineering
SPS JPN/10 Japan 08/02/1996 Feed produced by recombinant DNA techniques
SPS JPN/11 Japan 08/02/1996 Feed additives produced by recombinant DNA
techniques
SPS CZE/2 Czech Republic 27/03/1996 Seed and seedlings of crops
SPS USA/64 United States of
America2/9/1996 Veterinary Biological Products
SPS CAN/14 Canada 26/09/1996 Biotechnology
SPS  JPN/27 Japan 19/06/1997 Feed Additives produced by the recombinant
DNA techniques
SPS  NZL/19 New Zealand 28/08/1998 Novel Foods
SPS USA/126 United States of
America24/6/1998 Export of animal drugs, biologics, food
additives as well as the importation ofcomponents for incorporation or further
processing into articles intended for export
SPS AUS/73 Australia 08/09/1998 Novel Foods
SPS CAN/41 Canada 02/10/1998 Novel Foods
SPS CHE/17 Switzerland 21/10/1998 Foodstuffs
SPS COL/25 Colombia 12/01/1999 Rice
SPS USA/152 United States of
America31/3/1999  Veterinary Biological ProductsG/SPS/GEN/186
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Type WTO No. Country Date
(dd/mm/yy)Product Covered
SPS KOR/55 Republic of
Korea16/04/1999 Foods and Food Additives
SPS USA/157 United States of
America21/5/1999  Animal Drugs, Human Drugs, Biologics and
Devices
SPS JPN/51 Japan 08/02/2000 Foods and food additives produced by
recombinant DNA techniques
SPS JPN/52 Japan 08/02/2000 Foods and food additives produced by
recombinant DNA techniques
SPS USA/228 United States of
America22/2/2000 Biotechnological/Biological Veterinary
Medicinal Products
SPS USA/237 United States of
America14/03/2000 Pesticide: Cry1F Plant Pesticide
SPS KOR/66 Republic of
Korea01/05/2000 Foods
TBT  95.0266 Canada 12/09/1995 Novel foods
TBT 97.0151 European Union 21/04/1997 Foods and food ingredients made from
genetically modified soya and maize
TBT 97.0382 European Union 06/08/1997 Products Containing GMOs
TBT 97.0383 Norway 06/08/1997 Prepacked Foodstuffs & ingredients except food
additives, flavorings & extraction solvents.
TBT 97.0766 European Union 12/12/1997 Labeling foods/food ingredients produced from
genetically modified soya and maize
TBT  98.0442 Germany 28/08/1998 Foodstuffs
TBT 99.0095 Switzerland 23/03/1999 Products containing living genetically modified
organisms (LGMO) or pathogenic organisms,such as seeds, pesticides, fertilizers, food,
animal feeding stuffs, live vaccines
TBT 99.0134 Australia 26/03/99 Foods Derived From Gene Technology
TBT 99.0204 Republic of
Korea03/05/1999 Agricultural & fishery products, & their
processed products
TBT 99.0244 New Zealand 19/05/1999 Foods derived from Gene Technology
TBT 99.0250 Switzerland 21/05/1999 Medicines that contain/consist of genetically
modified organisms or medicines manufactured
by recombinant DNA technology
TBT 99.0275 Australia 14/06/1999 Foods produced using gene technology
TBT 99.0343 Norway 22/07/1999 Foodstuffs and Food Ingredients
TBT 99.0508 Switzerland 08/10/1999 Fertilizers
TBT 99.0521 European Union 13/10/1999 Foods and food ingredients produced from
certain genetically modified soja and maize(various tariff headings)
TBT 99.0536 Netherlands 20/10/1999 Foods and drinks prepared without gene
technology, in other words foods and drinks notbeing a foodstuff or food ingredient as referredto in article 1, para. 2 (a to c) of (EC) Regulation
258/97G/SPS/GEN/186
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Type WTO No. Country Date
(dd/mm/yy)Product Covered
TBT 99.0552 Switzerland 05/11/1999 Seeds
TBT 99.0669 Japan 23/12/1999 All foods and beverages on sale for consumers
TBT 00.0001 Republic of
Korea10/01/2000 Genetically modified agricultural products (not
processed)
TBT 00.0049 Switzerland 01/02/2000 Products containing living genetically modified
organisms (LGMO), such as seeds, pesticides,fertilizers, animal feedstuffs, foodstuffs and livevaccines
TBT 00.0067 European Union 22/02/2000 Seed of agricultural plant species and seed
potatoes
TBT 00.0170 Malaysia 10/04/2000 Food Regulation on Infant Formula
TBT 00.0207 Republic of
Korea03/05/2000 Foods
TBT 00.0231 Republic of
Korea03/05/2000 Foods
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