EU-US Trade Deal Lets Corporate Interests Steamroll Food Safety, Groups Warn

http://www.commondreams.org/news/2014/08/28/eu-us-trade-deal-lets-corporate-interests-steamroll-food-safety-groups-warn



In letter to EU Trade Commissioner, groups write that leaked TTIP chapter shows 'agribusinesses in the driving seat' at expense of fair, safe food

EU-US Trade Deal Lets Corporate Interests Steamroll Food Safety, Groups Warn
Andrea Germanos, staff writer
Thursday, August 28, 2014

An EU-U.S. trade deal currently being negotiated behind closed doors puts corporate profits and trade interests above fair and safe food for consumers, a trio of groups charged Wednesday.

Friends of the Earth Europe, Minnesota-based Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP), and UK-based Compassion in World Farming outline their concerns in a letter (pdf) sent to EU Trade Commissioner De Gucht because, they write, "the European Commission has failed fully to appreciate European and US civil society concerns."

~snip~

Among these concerns is that if the TTIP is implemented, the import re-inspection at port of entry would no longer happen because the U.S and EU food safety systems would be recognized as "equivalent," which, for example, could inadvertently allow genetically modified agricultural products into the EU food supply. From the letter:

First if, as we mention in our analysis, a standard is approved as ‘ equivalent ’, but the implementation is poor – due to budget cuts or other dysfunction – consumer protection and public health may be compromised. For example, if US testing of GMO contamination in agricultural exports is recognised as ‘equivalent’ to EU rules, but is not rigorously enforced, EU consumers could be faced with hidden GMO contamination of their food. Particularly so if verification is not possible, because port inspection s of ‘equivalent’ food products are cut. Poor implementation of rules in the US has led to unapproved varieties of US grown GM rice spreading to several countries, and to unauthorized GM wheat spreading last year from Oregon to Asia, forcing countries to enforce import bans against US wheat.

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Rhetorical question (that I know the answer to): Why are all these deals done "behind closed doors"?

Hint: