U.S. to Fight Foreign GMO Restrictions
U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said at the first meeting of a newly-formed task force, chaired by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, that the U.S. will insist that foreign regulations barring the export of U.S. GMO crops that are not science-based be eliminated.
The executive order calling for the creation of the task force said it was being created to seek out regulatory, legislative, or policy changes that would generate long-term advances for agriculture and ag technology, among 11 other areas of interest.
Reluctance to approve the importation of U.S. GMO crops by trade partners such as China and the EU has been seen as holding back U.S. rural development and prosperity, and Lighthizer said that the U.S. will be prepared to bring cases to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and other venues.
The task force will have four working groups representing 22 federal departments and agencies. A deadline of October 22 has been set for the completion of a report that Perdue told reporters could help frame the 2018 Farm Bill.
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