Title: Biotechnology: Can the transatlantic trade and investment partnership reconcile EU and US differences on GMOs?

Authors: Claude J. Chereau

Addresses: University of New Haven, West Haven, CT 06516, USA

Abstract: The USA and EU have announced negotiations for a free trade agreement (FTA) to be completed by end of 2014. While tariff barriers between the two entities are limited, their trade is encumbered with non-tariff barriers (NTBs), one of them being their diverging approach to genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in the agriculture and food industries. The USA operates from a science-based perspective while the EU relies on the precautionary principle. This paper reviews the developments of GMOs in both the USA and EU and draws on measures outlined in international organisations and recent trade agreements to explore options for the USA and EU to reconcile their different perspectives within the framework of the transatlantic trade and investment partnership (TTIP).

Keywords: FTA; free trade agreements; TTIP; transatlantic trade and investment partnership; NTBs; non-tariff barriers; agriculture; food; biotechnology; precautionary principle; GMOs; genetically modified organisms; global markets; USA; United States; EU; European Union; science-based perspectives.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTGM.2014.067278

International Journal of Trade and Global Markets, 2014 Vol.7 No.4, pp.316 - 338

Received: 04 Dec 2013
Accepted: 25 Mar 2014
Published online: 02 Feb 2015 *

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