Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
instrumental.in.distributing.products.to.large.regional.wholesalers..The.wholesalers.
distribute.products.to.local.lorists.and.supermarkets..There.are.some.exceptions.to.
these. general. patterns.. For.example,.a. few. internet-direct. importers.of.cut.lowers.
allow.lorists.to.ship.directly.from.farms.in.South.America.to.destinations.in.Europe.
and.the.United.States..Some.of.the.large.chain.retailers.control.their.own.distribu-
tion. chain. directly. from. Africa. or. South. America. to. the. United. States. or. Europe..
Certain. locations,. such. as. California. or. Holland,. have. either. favorable. climate. or.
favorable.infrastructure.that.allow.for.the.production.of.cut.lowers.in.the.Northern.
Hemisphere.
For. international. trade. of. conventionally. bred. varieties,. growers. routinely. deal.
with.the.phytosanitary.regulations.required.for.the.export.and.import.of.plant.mate-
rial..These.are,.for.the.most.part,.fairly.similar.from.country.to.country..They.are.
mainly.written.and.enforced.to.ensure.that.plant.material.is.pest.and.disease.free.as.
it.travels.from.one.country.to.another..For.a.transgenic.variety,.however,.a.developer.
would.need.to.apply.for.government.approval.and.permission.to.import.and.distribute.
in.each.member.state.or.region.of.the.supply.chain..A.considerable.amount.of.time.
and.effort.would.be.required.to.identify.the.appropriate.government.agency,.under-
stand.the.authorization.process,.liaise.with.the.appropriate.government.oficials,.and.
prepare.the.appropriate.application.documents.required.for.government.approval.
For.example,.in.a.hypothetical.case,.starting.in.Costa.Rica,.a.developer.of.a.trans-
genic. petunia. would. need. to. gain. approval. for. import. and. growth. of. stock. plants.
from. the. Costa. Rican. government.. Costa. Rica. is. one. of. the. largest. producers. of.
un-rooted. cuttings. for. the. North. American. bedding. plant. industry.. In. Costa. Rica,.
the. National. Technical. Biosafety. Commission. (NTBC). regulates. the. production.
of.transgenic.crops. 33 .The.NTBC.has.approved.the.production.of.transgenic.cotton.
and.soybean.seeds.and.would.presumably.be.amenable.to.the.production.of.trans-
genic.cuttings.of.ornamentals..Imports.of.such.cuttings.into.the.United.States.would.
require.that.the.developer.iles.a.petition.for.deregulation.with.USDA-APHIS-BRS.
and.the.EPA,.if.the.variety.contained.a.PIP.
If.the.developer.wanted.to.ship.transgenic.petunia.cuttings.to.Europe,.he.would.be.
required.to.ile.and.obtain.approval.for.release.of.the.variety.throughout.the.EEC. 31,32 .
In.theory,.a.developer.can.ile.for.approval.in.a.single.member.state..If.the.variety.
is.approved.in.that.member.state.(e.g.,.Holland).and.no.other.member.state.objects,.
the.variety.can. be.released.and.commercialized.in.all.member.states..Even.if.one.
member.state.objects,.an.opinion.is.sought.from.the.European.Food.Safety.Authority.
(EFSA).and.used.by.the.European.Commission.to.approve.or.reject.the.application.
For. cut. lower. production. and. import. into. the. United. States,. Columbia. and.
Ecuador.are.the.two.main.sites.of.production..The.regulatory.system.in.Columbia.
is. more. accommodating. for. the. production. of. transgenic. crops. than. Ecuador's. 34 .
A. 2006. law. in. Ecuador. prohibits. the. trade,. use,. and. handling. of. transgenic. prod-
ucts. for. human. consumption.. Though. limited. quantities. of. transgenic. carnations.
have. been. produced. in. Ecuador,. transgenic. cotton. is. widely. planted. in. Columbia,.
and.the.government.and.agricultural.industry.appear.to.be.generally.supportive.of.
biotechnology. 35
Similar.technology.driven.import.barriers.exist.for.countries.such.as.Japan 36 .and.
China. 37 .Thus.import.of.cutting.material.for.growth.and.sale.in.Japan.would.require.
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