US Wins Controversial Ruling in GM Corn Dispute with Mexico – Global Issues
CAMBRIDGE, MA., Dec 23 (IPS) – A court of trade arbitration has ruled in favor of the United States in its complaint that Mexico’s restrictions on genetically modified corn violate the terms of the US-Mexico-Canada trade agreement (USMCA). The long-awaited decision in the 16-month trade dispute is unlikely to resolve questions raised by Mexico about the safety of GM corn and related herbicides.
Indeed, the decision in favor of the US raises questions about the impartiality of the USMCA itself, which has now authorized the use of the treaty’s dispute process to challenge domestic policy that is less affected by trade. US president-elect Donald Trump is now openly threatening Mexico with 25% tariffs on all Mexican exports, a clear violation of the USMCA that Trump himself renegotiated and signed in 2018. However, the agreement appears to be powerless to challenge US collective trade measures as they stand. the court applauds Mexico for its public health policies.
According to the US government, the final report from the court, announced December 20, ruled that “Mexican measures are not based on science and undermine the access to the market that Mexico has agreed to provide in the USMCA.” In fact, the trade panel’s decision was a decision. more limited, requiring Mexico to comply with the trade agreement’s procedures for conducting risk assessments based on “relevant international scientific principles.”
The Mexican government defended its position but vowed to abide by the decision. “The Mexican government does not participate in the decision of the Panel, as it considers that the measures in question are consistent with the principles of protecting public health and the rights of indigenous peoples, established in national law and international agreements where the law is respected. it’s a group,” reads the statement following the decision.
This decision will not resolve the debate about the health and environmental risks of GM corn and the herbicides associated with it. During the dispute, Mexico produced a lot of peer-reviewed scientific evidence that shows sufficient reason for caution given the risks associated with both GM corn. and the related herbicide glyphosate. Recent studies have shown negative health effects on the gastrointestinal tract and possible damage to the liver, kidneys, and other organs.
“He studied the scientific literature,” explains María Elena Àlvarez-Buylla, a geneticist who leads Mexico’s national scientific association, CONAHCYT, until October. “We conclude that the evidence is sufficient to restrict, out of caution, the use of GM corn and the agro-chemical, glyphosate, in the country’s food supply chains.”
That evidence was presented in detail in court in Mexico’s official filing during the process, and has now been published as a “Scientific Dossier.” It represents the most comprehensive review of the scientific evidence of the risks of GM corn and glyphosate to public health and the environment.
On the other hand, the US government has refused to present evidence that its GM corn with glyphosate residues is safe to eat in Mexico, where corn is eaten more than ten times as much as in the United States and in less processed forms such as tortillas, not in processed foods.
Dr. Álvarez-Buylla says: “The US research was very poor, noting that the US research was out of date, ignored many recent studies, and relied on science “fraught with conflicts of interest.”
The US government has also failed to present evidence that the Mexican president’s February 2023 executive order had a tangible impact on US exporters. US corn exports have increased since the law was passed, not decreased. The measures limited the use of GM white corn in tortillas, to less than 1% of US corn exported to Mexico.
At the beginning of the conflict, the Minister of Economy of Mexico Raquel Buenrostro said that the US needs to demonstrate “in abundance, in numbers, something that has never happened: that the corn order has affected the commerce” of American traders. The US has yet to produce any such evidence.
Meanwhile, the tariffs threatened by President Trump are illegal under the USMCA and promise to cause significant economic damage to Mexican exporters, as well as US firms that manufacture in Mexico.
A pro-US, pro-agrochemical industry decision will override this conflict. Mexico’s documentation of the dangers from GM corn and glyphosate should prompt consumers and governments around the world to take a closer look at these controversial products, as well as the lax US regulatory practices exposed by Mexico.
Countries considering trade deals with the United States now may be reluctant to do so if their domestic policies cannot be challenged in a trade court. Kenya has been negotiating a trade deal with the United States. Kenyans are already concerned that the deal will open Kenya to alternative animal feed, says Anne Maina of the Kenya Biodiversity and Biosafety Association. If the deal can be used to challenge domestic policies, he says, it will be even more interesting.
It remains to be seen how the Mexican government will follow up on this decision. It has 45 days to respond. Already, President Claudia Sheinbaum has reiterated her support for a constitutional amendment to ban the cultivation of GM corn and the use of tortillas. The “Right to Food” law passed last year mandates the labeling of foods containing GMOs. No tortilla seller wants such a label on its products, because Mexican consumers are clear that they do not want GM corn in their tortillas.
The court’s decision will not negate the fact that Mexico’s surveillance policies are indeed justified by scientific evidence. By allowing a trade deal to undermine domestic policy that has little impact on trade, it will further tarnish the legitimacy of an agreement that already appears to favor multinational corporations over public health and the environment.
Timothy A. Wise is a senior researcher at the Global Development and Environment Institute at Tufts University.
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© Inter Press Service (2024) — All Rights ReservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service
