[CTC] Fwd: IATP statement on US GM corn dispute panel

Fri Aug 18 07:46:30 PDT 2023

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Jordan Treakle <jordan at nffc.net>
Date: Thu, Aug 17, 2023 at 5:18 PM
Subject: Re: [CTC] IATP statement on US GM corn dispute panel
To: Arthur Stamoulis <arthur at citizenstrade.org>, Karen Hansen-Kuhn <
khansenkuhn at iatp.org>

Thanks Arthur and Karen for this statement, which we at NFFC definitely
support. I think I failed to share with you a similar statement we put out
on this issue in June <https://nffc.net/us-mexicos-agricultural-policies/>,
which you all are free to circulate if helpful.
Best,

Jordan

On Thu, Aug 17, 2023 at 4:44 PM Arthur Stamoulis <arthur at citizenstrade.org>
wrote:

>
>
>
>
> On Thu, Aug 17, 2023, 4:03 PM Karen Hansen-Kuhn <khansenkuhn at iatp.org>
> wrote:
>
>> *    Media Contact*: Cecelia Brackey
>>
>>   cbrackey at iatp.org, +1-651-328-4706
>>
>> *FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE *
>>
>> *August 17, 2023*
>>
>>
>>
>> *U.S. ESCALATES TRADE DISPUTE OVER GM CORN, CHALLENGES MEXICO’S FOOD
>> SOVEREIGNTY*
>>
>> *U.S. Trade Representative office’s move to form dispute resolution panel
>> lacks justification according to experts *
>>
>>
>>
>> *MINNEAPOLIS/Washington, D.C.*—Today, the United States Trade
>> Representative (USTR) office escalated its complaint against Mexico’s ban
>> on genetically modified (GM) corn, asserting it as a potential violation of
>> the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). USTR filed a request for the
>> formation of a dispute resolution panel under the USCMA framework. The
>> Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy has analyzed the USMCA and
>> believes that USTR is exaggerating the economic impacts on U.S. producers
>> and that the agreement permits such precautionary policies to protect
>> public health and the environment.
>>
>> U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and the agribusiness sector
>> have asserted that biotech and environment provisions within USMCA require
>> Mexico to permit the importation of GM corn. However, these claims are
>> false
>> <https://www.iatp.org/documents/understanding-agricultural-biotechnology-provisions-us-mexico-canada-agreement>:
>> A examination of the agreement reveals that “Mexico retains authority to
>> adopt and implement policies to protect the environment and public health,
>> preserve and enhance biodiversity, and respect Indigenous communities and
>> lifestyles.”
>>
>> USTR Katherine Tai has expressed unfounded concern that Mexico’s policies
>> might disrupt billions of dollars in agricultural trade between the
>> countries. No credible evidence exists to support this claim, as determined
>> by analysis from IATP
>> <https://www.iatp.org/distorting-markets-name-free-trade> of the
>> economic modeling study that underpins the USTR claim. The economic study
>> was commissioned by CropLife and other agribusiness entities in the U.S.
>> and Mexico, all with strong economic interests in blocking Mexico’s
>> restrictions on GM corn.
>>
>> In response to U.S. officials’ critique of Mexico’s ban on GM corn as not
>> founded in science, the Mexican government organized a robust series of
>> webinars this spring that presented substantive evidence on the human
>> health concerns surrounding GM food. For years, Mexico’s national science
>> agency has maintained a public database
>> <https://conahcyt.mx/cibiogem/index.php/sistema-nacional-de-informacion/documentos-y-actividades-en-bioseguridad>
>> of evidence underlying the concerns about public health and corn
>> biodiversity from both GM corn and the herbicide glyphosate. A synthesis
>> report of these scientific finds is due out shortly.
>>
>> The U.S. government has refused Mexico’s offer to collaborate in an
>> examination of the science, particularly in relation to less-well-studied
>> concerns about the consumption of animal products fed on GM corn and
>> glyphosate. Victor Suarez, Mexico’s Undersecretary of Agriculture for Food
>> Self-Sufficiency, told Reuters
>> <https://www.reuters.com/science/mexican-official-says-us-refuses-cooperate-gm-corn-studies-2023-08-03/>
>> the U.S. thinks it can unilaterally determine the science of the issue.
>>
>> “U.S. agribusiness exporters, the biotech industry and their allies in
>> Congress are pushing this case, intent on compelling Mexico to accept U.S.
>> exports without debate. It is an assault on Mexico’s food sovereignty,”
>> says Karen Hansen-Kuhn, IATP director of trade and international
>> strategies and author of an op-ed
>> <https://www.iatp.org/us-trade-dispute-genetically-modified-corn-shaky-ground>
>> on Mexico’s rights under the USMCA. “Trade rules should provide a forum
>> to protect and advance rights, rather than block them.”
>>
>> “As Mexican Economy Minister Raquel Buenrostro stated
>> <https://www.gob.mx/se/prensa/secretaria-de-economia-y-ustr-dialogan-sobre-el-decreto-de-maiz>
>> in response to the USTR request for technical consultations, Mexico’s
>> decree is based on science, and she will challenge the U.S. government in
>> the consultations to show ‘quantitatively, with numbers, something that has
>> not occurred: that the corn decree has commercially affected U.S.
>> exporters,’” says Timothy A. Wise, IATP senior advisor, whose op-ed
>> <https://www.iatp.org/false-alarms-over-mexicos-gm-corn-restrictions>
>> summarizes the exaggeration of economic impacts from the Mexican measures.
>> “The Mexican government will show what has occurred: Its cherished
>> tortillas are being contaminated with glyphosate and GM corn. And they
>> intend to put a stop to that.”
>>
>> Beyond the immediate implications, the case could set precedent for other
>> trade negotiations, potentially including the Indo Pacific Economic
>> Framework negotiations, which will cover agriculture, as well as in current
>> talks with Kenya. In addition, Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro is
>> asking for a renegotiation
>> <https://www.infobae.com/colombia/2023/08/16/gustavo-petro-anuncio-que-colombia-empezo-a-renegociar-el-tlc-con-estados-unidos/>
>> of its trade agreement with the U.S., in part due to rising dependence on
>> unfairly priced corn exports from the U.S.
>>
>> ###
>>
>> Based in Minneapolis with offices in Washington, D.C., and Berlin,
>> Germany, the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy works locally and
>> globally at the intersection of policy and practice to ensure fair and
>> sustainable food, farm and trade systems. To learn more, visit:
>> www.iatp.org*.*
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> [image: Logo Description automatically generated] <http://www.iatp.org/>
>>
>>
>> *Karen Hansen-Kuhn **she/her/hers*
>>
>> Director of Trade and International Strategies
>>
>>
>>
>> p  | 202-543-8602
>>
>> w | www.iatp.org
>>
>> a  | 110 Maryland Ave., NE, Suite 307
>>
>>        Washington, DC 20002
>>
>>
>>
>> *Donate to support <http://www.iatp.org/donate> IATP’s work.*
>>
>> [image: Icon Description automatically generated]
>> <https://www.facebook.com/IATPiatp>
>>
>> [image: Logo, icon Description automatically generated]
>> <https://twitter.com/iatp>
>>
>> [image: Icon Description automatically generated]
>> <https://www.linkedin.com/company/institute-for-agriculture-and-trade-policy>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> ---
>>
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-- 
Jordan Treakle (he/him)
National Programs and Policy Coordinator
National Family Farm Coalition
        www.nffc.net
        202.543.5675
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