Japan will demand GM product tests

By Michiyo Nakamoto in Tokyo
Published: April 25 2000 21:19GMT | Last Updated: April 25 2000 21:23GMT
   
Financial Times

Japan plans to demand safety screening of genetically modified products in
a development likely to add to the difficulty of importing agricultural
produce from the US. 

Japan's Ministry of Health and Welfare on Tuesday accepted a
recommendation from a government panel that mandatory safety tests on
genetically modified products should be required before importing them into
Japan. Currently, safety testing is voluntary. 

Japan is a latecomer to the growing number of countries that have taken a
strict stance on genetically modified organisms (GMOs). 

It is one of the largest customers of US agricultural producers, buying
imports worth about $10bn a year. Japan relies on US production for 80 per
cent of its soybean imports and 90 per cent of its corn imports. 

The US government has indicated that depending on the impact that Japanese
government regulation has on agricultural trade between the countries, it
would consider taking legal action. 

However US officials in Washington played down Japan's new stance. They
said it effectively formalised existing procedures, and they did not expect
it to have any negative impact on the biotechnology industry or on
exporters to Japan. 

The latest recommendation follows a decision by the Japanese government
last year to require labelling of products that contain GMOs or proteins
created with biotechnology from next April. 

The labelling requirement has already had a significant impact on imports
of soy beans, tofu bean curd and corn-meal based products in particular. 

The Japanese government's decision to require labelling, which has been
spurred by growing consumer concerns about genetically modified foods, has
already resulted in a rush by importers and retailers to seek non-GMO
products. 

Itochu, a leading importer, plans to switch all of its soybean imports to
non-GMO products ahead of the new labelling rules. 

Japanese producers have benefited from the trend by being able to
advertise their products as non-GMO. 

Japanese farmers do not grow GMO products for sale. 

Advocates of greater food self-sufficiency have used the debate to
emphasise the dangers of imported food and have called for stricter rules,
if not restrictions on agricultural imports. 

Japanese consumer groups, among the most outspoken opponents of GMOs, have
long campaigned against imported food products. 

The situation has raised suspicions in the US government that the GMO
issue is being used to discriminate against agricultural imports. 

However, consumer anxiety over GMOs has made it difficult for the US to
claim the Japanese government is obstructing free trade. 

The Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare said it did not expect the
mandatory safety tests to dramatically affect imports. 

However an official at Mitsui, the trading company that has about a 30 per
cent share of the imported corn market, complained: "It has become very
risky. From now on, if we import GMOs even without knowing it, we could be
imprisoned." 

But given Japan's reliance on US produce, implementation of the new rules
is likely to be very difficult, he warned.