Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
activities. In addition, the globalization of commerce movement, pro-
moted by treaties to eliminate national barriers to free trade, has had
the effect of suppressing domestic regulation when it would make U.S.
firms less competitive, or conflict with treaty obligations.
Thus, governance of the safety of GM crops and foods at any point
in time in the United States is the result of the interactive functioning
of these three social control mechanisms and their responsiveness to
incidents and to changes in the cultural context. This approach to gov-
ernance lacks the clarity and certainties of governance in EU nations
where regulation is the dominant system of social control, private lit-
igation is disfavored, and corporations have cooperative working rela-
tionships with regulators in contrast to the adversarial relationships that
prevail in the United States.
Federal Regulation
A “Coordinated Framework”
4
for federal regulation of “biotechnology
products” was announced by the President's Office of Science and Tech-
nology Policy (OSTP) in 1986, and was followed by an amplified version
in 1992. It stands as the only policy guidance on federal oversight and
regulation of genetically engineered products, including GM crops and
foods. It assigns oversight roles to four federal agencies, asserts that pre-
viously enacted laws that empower these agencies are sufficient for reg-
ulating GM product risks, and warns the agencies that any GM product
regulations they enact should be based solely on end product risks with-
out consideration of the biotechnological processes involved in making
the products. Because Congress has not acted to amend or override this
presidential policy, it has been dutifully followed by the designated agen-
cies, including those assigned to GM crops and foods, the Department of
4
Coordinated Framework for Regulation of Biotechnology, 51 Fed. Reg. 23302 (Jun.
26, 1986); Exercise of Federal Authority within Scope of Statutory Authority: Planned
Introductions of Biotechnology Products into the Environment, 27 Fed. Reg. 6753
(Feb. 27, 1992).
