G/SPS/GEN/1383
3 March 2015
(15-1195)  Page: 1/2
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures  Original: Spanish
 
  COMMENTS ON THE PROPOSAL FOR A REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 
AND OF THE COUNCIL ON NOVEL FOODS (DOCUMENT G/SPS/N/EU/64) 
COMMUNICATION FROM PERU 
The following communication, received on 25 February 2015, is being circulated at the request 
of the delegation of Peru. 
 
_______________ 
  1   As regards the trade concern arising from the proposed regulation of the European Union 
repealing Regulation (EC) No. 258/97 on Novel Foods, which was notified to this Committee 
in document G/SPS/N/EU/64 and addenda thereto, Pe ru would like to reiterate some of the issues 
raised earlier, which remain a source of concern for the various Peruvian actors involved in the 
export of traditional biodiversity products, wh ose production and trade are being encouraged 
under Peruvian State policy. 
2   The proposed Regulation appears to be inconsistent with Article 5.1 and 5.2 (Assessment 
of Risk and Determination of the Appropriate Le vel of Sanitary or Phytosanitary Protection) 
and with Article 2.2 (Basic Rights and Obligations) of the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary 
and Phytosanitary Measures. Indeed, the ban placed on the marketing of novel foods is not based on a risk assessment by the European Union that provides the scientific grounds necessary 
to justify application of the restrictive measure, but on the applicant's difficulty in producing 
evidence of the safety of the product it seeks to market within the Union, even though some of the 
foods in question are already being marketed in other WTO Member countries. Peru accordingly 
requests that the European Union explain how the proposed Regulation would be consistent with 
Articles 5.1, 5.2 and 2.2 of the SPS Agreement, under which Members are required to base their 
sanitary or phytosanitary measures on a risk assessment. 
3   The proposed Regulation also appears to be inco nsistent with Article 5.6 of the SPS Agreement. 
Indeed, it involves a degree of trade restriction greater than that required to achieve an appropriate level of sanitary or phytosanitary protection, compared to other WTO Members' legislation dealing with the same subject but whose procedures involve fewer restrictions.
1 
4   It should be emphasized that Peru's high-potential traditional products derived 
from biodiversity are being affected by the European Union's current Regulation on Novel 
Foods. For example, the table below sh ows Peru's global exports of kaniwa2(or cañihua 
(Chenopodium pallidicaule )), which increased by more than 317% in 2013 and about 206% 
in 2014 and went to markets such as Australia, Canada and the United States. Kaniwa obviously 
has a long history of safe consumption and is hence widely accepted in the international market. 
Nonetheless, the marketing of this food in the European market is restricted and its real potential 
cannot be exploited. 
 
                                               
1 Examples of such legislation are the People's Republic of China's Administrative Measures for Safety 
Review of New Food Materials  and Canada's Division 28 of Part B of the Food and Drug Regulations . 
2 Kaniwa (or cañihua) is an Andean cereal with a high nutritional value, containing twice as much 
protein as foods such as wheat, rice and oats. It is native of the Peruvian  Altiplano and is produced mainly in 
the Puno region to the north of Lake Titicaca. G/SPS/GEN/1383 
- 2 - 
  
Source: Promperú. 
 
5   Without prejudice to the issues raised earlier, Pe ru also requests the European Union to clarify 
the scope of the phrase "a large part of th e population of a third country", contained 
in Article 2.2(c) (Definitions). The definition do es not specify the percentage or number of people 
required for this part of the population to be considered "large", nor does it specify whether the 
population in question should constitute a representative sample of the country's population as a whole or whether it may concern specific areas. 
6   In conclusion, Peru hopes that the European Union will be able to settle the concerns that have 
arisen in connection with the proposed Regulation  over the years spent discussing this topic in the 
Committee, because it represents a potential obstacle to real and effective access for traditional 
biodiversity products to the European market. We thank the European Union for its flexibility 
in addressing the concerns expressed. 
__________