RESTRICTED
WORLD TRADE G/SPS/R/6
14November 1996
ORGANIZATION(96-4837)
Committee onSanitary andPhytosanitary Measures
SUMMARY OFTHE MEETING HELD ON
8-9OCTOBER 1996
Note bytheSecretariat
1. TheCommitteeonSanitaryandPhytosanitaryMeasures("theCommittee")helditssixthmeeting
on8-9October 1996 under thechairmanship ofAmbassador KariBergholm (Finland). Theagenda
proposed inWTO/AIR/435 wasadopted withamendments.
Observers
2. TheChairman recalled that,on25July1996, theGeneral Council hadadopted adecision with
respect tothegranting ofobserver status tointernational intergovernmental organizations. Thisdecision
allowed theWTO Committees toconfer observer status onaregular, rather thanadhoc,basis. Since
consultations were stillbeing heldwithin theWTO onthemost appropriate waytoimplement this
decision, theCommittee deferred theconsideration ofthisissue untilitsnextregular meeting. The
Chairman noted thatnofurther requests forobserver status hadbeenreceived since thelastmeeting.
TheCommittee welcomed observers from theOffice international desépizooties (OIE), Codex
Alimentarius Commission (Codex), International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), World Health
Organization (WHO), FoodandAgriculture Organization oftheUnited Nations (FAO), United Nations
Conference onTrade andDevelopment (UNCTAD), International Trade Centre (ITC), andInternational
Standards Organization (ISO).
Rules ofProcedure
3. Forthethird consecutive time, therepresentative ofIndia informed theCommittee thathe
maintained reservations regarding theproposed Rules ofProcedure (G/SPS/W/48). Several Members
expressed regret that,aftercompleting nearly twoyears ofwork, theSPSCommittee wasstillunable
toreach aconsensus ontheRules ofProcedures andurged India toreconsider itsposition before the
nextregular meeting oftheCommittee. Inthemeantime, theCommittee would continue tooperate
under itsWorking Procedures (G/SPS/1).
Report totheSingapore Ministerial Conference
4. TheChairman informed Members ontheinformal consultations which hadbeenheldinorder
toprepare thereport oftheSPSCommittee forconsideration attheSingapore Ministerial Conference.
Participants noted thatthetextbefore themaccurately reflected thework carried outbytheCommittee
during thecourse ofitsmeetings, aswellasthemajor concerns raised. TheCommittee adopted the
report totheSingapore Ministerial Conference (subsequently issued asG/L/118).G/SPS/R/6
Page2
Implementation oftheAgreement -Information from Members
Colombia: Creation oftheNational Information System onStandardization Measures andConformity
Assessment Procedures
5. Therepresentative ofColombia informed theCommittee thatinJune1996, hisGovernment
created anewbody, theNational Information System onStandardization Measures andProcedures
forMonitoring Compliance. Thefunctions ofthisbody, tasked withtheimplementation oftheSPS
Agreement, aredescribed indetail inG/SPS/W/73. Itsmajor rolewillbetocentralize SPS-related
standards,regulationsandconformityassessmentprocedures,maintaincontactwiththecompetentbodies
inorder toeffectively monitor theadoption ofproposed SPSmeasures, andenhance transparency as
required bytheSPSAgreement. Thenewly-designed information system wasalready operational,
although Colombia wasseeking technical assistance andcooperation withseveral administrative and
information processing difficulties.
Romania: FMD-free country
6. Therepresentative ofRomania informed theCommittee that,according totheOIE,Romania
hadfulfilled therequirements toberecognized asfreefromFoot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD) without
vaccination.GiventherecentoutbreaksofFMDintheBalkans,theNationalSanitaryVeterinaryAgency
adopted some protective measures attheborder. Thefulltextofthecommunication from Romania
isavailable indocument G/SPS/GN/1.
United States: Food Quality andProtection Act,1996 (FQPA)
7. Therepresentative oftheUnited States informed theCommittee thattherecently enacted Food
Quality Protection Actexplicitly addressed USobligations stemming fromtheSPSAgreement, while
maintaining highstandards ofprotection forUSconsumers. Adetailed description ofFQPA isavailable
inG/SPS/GN/4. Thislaw,essentially abroad-based pesticide law,establishes aconsistent levelof
protection forpesticide residues inbothrawandprocessed foods. Oneofitskeyfeatures istheexplicit
requirementthatUSregulatoryauthoritiestakepesticidesstandardsestablishedbytheCodexAlimentarius
Commission intoaccount when determining theirownstandards. Anotice mustbeavailable forpublic
comment explaining deviations, ifany,from theinternational standards.
8. Therepresentative ofArgentina regretted thatMembers hadnotbeengiven 60-day advance
notice andhence theopportunity tocomment onthisnewly-enacted piece oflegislation, asprovided
forinAnnex BoftheSPSAgreement. Therepresentative oftheUnited States assured theCommittee
thatfuture measures adopted under thisnewlegislation would benotified, asappropriate, inaccordance
withtherequirements oftheSPSAgreement.
Chile: Regional initiatives withMERCOSUR, European Union andselected Asian countries
9. Therepresentative ofChile informed theCommittee thatatradeagreement between Mercosur
andChile hadjustentered intoforce. Chapter 10ofthisagreement wasdedicated tosanitary and
phytosanitary measures andaddressed indetail theharmonization procedures between members '
regulations, aswellasriskanalysis procedures, withtheappropriate references totheWTO SPS
Agreement. Negotiations onabilateral SPSagreement withtheEuropean Union were expected to
beconcluded shortly. Other bilateral consultations ofahighly technical nature withselected Asian
countries hadbeensuccessfully completed. Theprovisions ontransparency andequivalence oftheG/SPS/R/6
Page3
SPSAgreement were keyissues forbothparties. Asian trading partners nowrecognized Chile, or
certain Chilean regions, asfreefrom fruit-fly, aswellasFMD. Inturn, Chile, afterconducting a
riskanalysis exercise, nowallowed imports oftropical products from these countries.
Implementation oftheAgreement --Specific trade concerns
10. Therepresentative oftheUnited States indicated thathewished toraiseanumber ofgeneric
issues, providing specific bilateral technical examples tostimulate aconstructive dialogue within the
Committee. Thisapproach would helptheCommittee tofocus onthepractical implementation ofthe
SPSAgreement, andhelptocreate amultilateral consensus onhoweachofthese issues should be
addressed. Thedebate could alsohelptheCommittee toconsolidate important achievements since
theeffective implementation oftheSPSAgreement should, intheUnited States 'view, bethefocus
oftheCommittee 'sefforts.
Testing requirements fordifferent varieties ofapples, cherries andnectarines -Japan
11. Therepresentative oftheUnited States reported that,under abilateral agreement concluded
withJapan in1995, Japan currently allowed twovarieties ofUSapples intoitsmarket. Japan required
USsuppliers toconduct lengthy andthusexpensive teststodemonstrate thatcombined treatment of
methyl bromide andcoldstorage waseffective inkilling codling moths onbothvarieties. These and
other testsonthree varieties ofapples, cherries andnectarines, demonstrated thattheeffectiveness
ofthistreatment didnotvaryamong different varieties ofthese fruits. Nevertheless, Japan continued
toblock theintroduction ofnewvarieties ofUSfruits byrequiring suchapparently redundant testing
tobeperformed foreachandevery variety. TheUnited States wasunaware ofanyscientific evidence
indicating theneedforsuchrepeated varietal testing, which appeared toconstitute anunnecessary barrier
totrade. TheUnited States hadrecently formally initiated aconsultation process withJapan under
Article 5:8oftheAgreement.
12. ThedelegationofJapanindicatedthattheformalexchangeofcommunicationbetweentheUnited
States andJapan would befollowed byaclarification process involving technical experts ofbothsides.
These discussions would continue untilasolution wasreached onacommon understanding ofthe
scientific principles involved.
Banonimported salmon -Australia
13. Therepresentative oftheUnited States reported thatAustralia maintained abanonNorth
American fresh, chilled orfrozen ocean salmon onthegrounds thatimports might transmit diseases
andpathogens toAustralian fishery stocks. In1994, following technical consultations andextensive
visits byAustralian experts toNorth American fisheries andproduction sites, Australia published a
draftriskassessment paper which indicated thatthere waslittleriskfrom imported North American
salmon. However, Australia didnotadjust itsmeasures toreflect theresults ofthatassessment, but
instead undertook another riskassessment which wascompleted inMay1996. Thissecond risk
assessment again demonstrated thelackofascientific basisformaintaining theban.Australia, however,
indicated thatthefinalreport would bepublished bytheendof1996. Inaccordance withtheprovisions
oftheSPSAgreement, theexpectations oftheUnited States werethatthefinaldetermination would
result inalifting oftheban.Theissueofharmonization withinternational standards wasalsorelevant
inthiscase,asthesalmon prevented fromentering theAustralian market complied withexisting OIE
standards.G/SPS/R/6
Page4
14. Therepresentative ofAustralia indicated that,onthebasisofrequests fromtheUnited States
andCanada toreconsider theAustralian quarantine legislation onuncooked salmon, inlate1994,
Australia sentatechnical mission comprising experts fromgovernment andindustry toNorth America.
Inaccordance withArticle 5:7oftheSPSAgreement, themission 'sobjective wastoseektheinformation
necessary toconduct amore objective assessment ofrisks, sothatthesanitary measure could be
reviewed. InMay1995, adraftreport onriskanalysis waspublished andnotified toWTO Members
inG/SPS/N/AUS/3. Thelargenumber ofcomments received onthisdrafthadledAustralia toconclude
thatitwasnecessary torevise itsimport riskanalysis. Arevised draftimport riskanalysis wasreleased
on28May1996. Over60dayswereallowed forpublic comment, andthistime,thirty foursubmissions
(including from theUnited States andCanada) were received. After evaluation ofthese inputs, the
revised draftimport riskanalysis wasupdated. Theconclusions ofthisprocess would beannounced
bytheendof1996. TheUnited States andCanada hadbeenkeptfullyinformed ofthetimetable of
thisprocess. Therepresentative ofAustralia further noted thattherelevant OIEstandard didnotmeet
Australia 'sacceptable levelofprotection.
15. Therepresentative ofAustralia added thattheimport riskanalysis inthiscasewasconsidered
tobeoneofthemosttechnically complex import riskanalysis everperformed inAustralia. Asmany
astwenty fourdiseases ofsalmonids which wereofconcern toAustralia wereidentified. Information
oneachofthese diseases wascollected, andtheriskassociated witheachwasassessed. Aneconomic
analysis wasalsoconducted toassess thepotential impact ofdisease imported withsalmon upon the
relevant domestic industries, including theagriculture andtourism industries based around fishing
salmonids.
Restrictions onlevels ofcopper andcadmium inimported squid -Spain
16. Therepresentative oftheUnited States noted thatUSexporters continued tofacemeasures
which discriminated between imported anddomestic products. Oneexample wastheSpanish regulation
onlevels ofcopper andother minerals inimported squid, fromwhich domestic aswellasECproducts
were specifically exempted. Thismeasure wasunsupported byscience orbyanyappropriate risk
assessment.
17. Therepresentative oftheEuropean Communities replied that,ayearago,theSpanish authorities
hadexplained thatthescientific justification forimposing such ameasure came from aWHO
recommendation onmaximum weekly intakes ofmetal. Hefurther clarified thattheabsence of
harmonization ofthepermitted levels ofvarious metals across theEuropean Communities wascurrently
being discussed inBrussels. Therepresentative ofArgentina observed thattheproblem athandwas
notoneofharmonization, butofnational treatment. Inhisview, thisquestion hadremained unanswered
bytheEuropean Communities.
Zero-tolerance forsalmonella inimported poultry products -Chile, Czech Republic, ElSalvador,
Slovakia, Honduras
18. Therepresentative oftheUnited States stated thatinanumber ofmarkets, problems arose
fromdiscrimination between thestandards forcontrol ofsalmonella thatwereapplied todomestic versus
imported poultry products. Henoted thattheCzech Republic, Slovak Republic, Chile, ElSalvador
andHonduras applied so-called zero-tolerance standards forsalmonella inimported poultry products.
Itwasmisleading torefertosuchrestrictions aszero-tolerance standards since noneofthese Member
appeared tohaveeradication orsurveillance systems inplacetoestablish thenon-existence ofsalmonella
intheirdomestic products. Thediscriminatory treatment resulted inaserious market access barrier.G/SPS/R/6
Page5
19. Therepresentative oftheSlovak Republic explained thattheStateVeterinary Administration
didnotapply zero-tolerance forsalmonella inimported poultry meat. Paragraph 2oftheVeterinary
Certificate forpoultry meat(subject toLaws No.87/1987 and239/1991 LC(provisions onveterinary
treatment) andDecree No.118/1987 and258/1994 LC(provisions covering veterinary protection of
thestateterritory) require imported poultry meat
"tobeobtained fromslaughter poultry originating fromholdings inwhich therewasnoevidence
ofsalmonella entritidis orsalmonella typhimurium andlaboratory examination forthese
salmonellae performed 14daysbefore slaughter wasnegative".
Thiscondition didnotstipulate azero-tolerance requirement forsalmonella inimported poultry meat,
butsetsanequivalent anteandpost-mortem treatment ofslaughter poultry, aswasrequired for
domestically produced poultry meat. Therequest forante-mortem examination andthebanonimports
ofpoultry meat originating from holdings which tested positive onsalmonella ,wasasound, non-
discriminatory sanitary policy, since itsought toprevent thedissemination ofthedisease within the
country. Therepresentative oftheSlovak Republic reminded theCommittee thatsince1990, outbreaks
ofsalmonella hadincreased. Scientific evidence showed thatthedisease wasspread mainly through
contaminated poultry products. Hereported thattheconditions established fortheimports ofpoultry
products applied equally toallMembers, andtodateconcerns hadnotbeenexpressed byanyother
trading partner.
20. Therepresentative oftheCzech Republic stated thathiscountry 'sveterinary requirements for
imports ofpoultry products complied withtheprovisions oftheSPSAgreement. Inestablishing those
requirements, thelevelofprevalence ofspecific diseases andtheexistence oferadication orcontrol
programmes inthecountry oforigin weretaken intoaccount. Thepresent regulations required negative
results onsalmonella testsinpoultry holdings andslaughterhouses. Discussions wereheldwithexperts
from theUnited States butnoassurances were received thatsuchrequirements would bemetinthe
United States. Some issues stillneeded clarification; forexample, thetesting andmonitoring of
salmonella forheattreated products intheUnited States, including (a)thefrequency oftesting inpoultry
holdings andflocks andpoultry slaughterhouses; and(b)howfeedback wasprovided totheveterinary
inspectors inslaughterhouses regarding theepizoological situation inthefield. Therelevant Czech
regulation required that
"meat mustcome fromanimals keptintheholding orflock, inaperimeter ofatleast30km
inwhich: during 12months prior toexport, nocaseoffowlplague hasbeenreported; and
during 3month prior toexport nocaseofNewcastle disease hasbeenreported".
Thisrequirement bytheCzech Republic waslessstringent thantheconditions imposed bytheEuropean
CommunitiesorsomeScandinaviancountriesonpoultryproducts,andhadalreadybeenmetbyThailand,
China, Brazil andsome European countries. Therepresentative oftheCzech Republic suggested that
bilateral consultations between veterinary experts frombothsideswasthemosteffective waytoreach
anagreement onthisissue.
21. TherepresentativesofHondurasandElSalvadorindicatedthattheywouldinformtheirauthorities
ofthestatement made bytheUnited States, andprovide aresponse atalaterdate.
22. Therepresentative ofChile observed thatbilateral consultations onsalmonella hadstarted in
1992.ChilepursuedalongtermpolicyobjectiveinSPS-relatedmatters,inordertomaintainanadequate
levelofprotection against thepestsanddiseases which werethought tosubstantially affect trade. Chile's
tradepolicies, atthesame time, always strived toeliminate restrictive measures thatwereunsupported
byscience, including inthepoultry sector.G/SPS/R/6
Page6
23. Further information onthesanitary requirements applying tothepoultry sector inChile was
provided inG/SPS/GN/3. TheChilean delegate indicated thattheconcern expressed bytheUnited
States wasprobably duetoamisunderstanding ofthose sanitary requirements. Countries exporting
rawpoultry meattoChile (e.g.Denmark) were required toperform atesttodetermine thelevelof
salmonella .Thetestresult waschecked against thelevelofprevalence ofthedisease intheexporting
country, which isakeyinput totheriskassessment procedure adopted byChile. Chile wasaware
thattheUnited States haddifficulties complying withthisrequirement given thehighlevelofprevalence
ofsalmonella domestically. On6June1996, President Clinton acknowledged theimportance ofthis
domestic problem andlaunched ahighpriority program toreduce theprevalence ofsalmonella .The
USSecretary ofAgriculture recommended thatthehazard analysis critical point (HACCP) approach
besystematicallyappliedinpoultryslaughterhouses.GiventhesituationintheUnitedStates,theChilean
government wasprepared toshow acertain flexibility andwould beprepared toconsider imports of
irradiated poultry meatfrom theUnited States asapossible alternative.
24. Therepresentative ofJapan welcomed thecomment made bytheUnited States thatitwasnot
theirintention toaddress thetechnical aspects ofspecific issues indetail during Committee meetings.
Therepresentatives ofCanada andArgentina recalled thespirit inwhich theUnited States hadmade
theirpresentation, noting thatlessons could belearned from specific examples, andsuggesting that
Members should contribute withmore issues tobroaden thediscussions. Canada wasparticularly
interested inafurther discussion ofnational treatment, andonwhat should beconsidered asa
reasonable period oftimeforthecompletion ofariskassessment. During theUruguay Round
negotiations, ithadnotbeenpossible toagree onanappropriate timeframe because oftherelative
complexity ofriskassessment. However, ithadbeenagreed thattheissueshould befurther pursued.
25. AllMembers concerned noted thatthediscussion ofspecific issues could promote thecorrect
implementation oftheSPSAgreement. Inorder tofacilitate thework oftheCommittee, Members
wishing toraisepoints under thisagenda itemwere requested toinform other Members concerned,
aswellastheSecretariat, atthelatest 11daysbefore themeeting date.
Transparency Provisions -Consideration ofSpecific Notifications Received
26. Therepresentative ofArgentina regretted thattheregulations notified inG/SPS/N/JPN/1 and
G/SPS/N/KOR/29, 30,31ofJapan andKorea werenotavailable inoneofthethree WTO working
languages. TheChairman recalled thatAnnex B,paragraph 8oftheSPSAgreement requires developed
country Members to"provide copies ofthedocuments or,incaseofvoluminous documents, summaries
ofthedocuments covered byaspecific notification inEnglish, French orSpanish" ,ifthereisaspecific
requestbyanotherMember.TherepresentativeofJapanobservedthathisgovernmentnormallyprovided
summaries ofthedocuments inEnglish. Therepresentative ofThailand suggested thatdeveloping
countries, intheirnotifications, givesufficient details inthedescription ofcontent, soastoenable
relevant comments byrecipient Members.
27. TherepresentativeoftheEuropeanCommunitiessignalledhisconcernthattheCzechnotification
G/SPS/N/CZE/12 indicated "notapplicable" forthefinaldateforcomment, although thismeasure
could have important trade implications. Furthermore, aquestion ofprinciple wasraised when
notifications didnotprovide anadequate period forcomments. Therepresentative oftheCzech Republic
replied thathewould examine theconcerns raised regarding thatnotification, andwould pursue the
matter bilaterally withtheEuropean Communities.G/SPS/R/6
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AnyOther Matters Related totheOperation ofTransparency Provisions
28. TheSecretariat drew theCommittee 'sattention totheGeneral Council 'sdecision onthe
derestriction ofWTO documents (WT/L/160/Rev.1). Sheexplained thatworking documents, summary
reports ofthemeetings, background notes prepared bytheSecretariat andanydrafts forconsideration
would stillbecirculated onarestricted basis. Documents submitted andcirculated as"restricted" would
beconsidered forderestriction after6months, unless either theCommittee oraMember requested
anearlier de-restriction. Decisions taken bytheCommittee, notifications, andother suchdocuments
would becirculated onanunrestricted basis. AnyMember submitting aworking document orstatement
could request thatitbecirculated onanunrestricted basis. Other documents would normally be
unrestricted unless aMember requested otherwise atthetimeofsubmission. Anewseries ofSPS
documents hadbeencreated, theG/SPS/GN series, which would contain statements, submissions (other
thanworking proposals), factual information from theSecretariat, etc.Inreply toquestions bythe
United States andJapan regarding theavailability ofSPSdocuments ontheInternet, theSecretariat
stated thatnotifications werenotavailable onInternet sincetheissuecould alsoaffect TBTnotifications,
andthematter wasstillunder consideration. However, allother SPSdocuments were currently
electronically available toMembers through thedocument dissemination service. Thenecessary
passwords could berequested through localmissions. Furthermore, anSPSsubdirectory hadbeen
created ontheWTO home page. TheSecretariat confirmed thatdocuments submitted byobserver
organisations would becirculated onarestricted basis upon theirrequest.
29. Therepresentative oftheUnited States raised anumber ofgeneral issues withrespect to
transparency. Hestated thatUSdatashowed thatasofmid-September, nearly three quarters ofWTO
Members hadyettonotify anySPSmeasure under theAgreement. Healsonoted thatthere werea
number ofcases inwhich Members hadadopted newmeasures without fullyapplying thetransparency
provisions oftheAgreement. Some specific examples included recent restrictions byHonduras on
imports ofrough rice,without anyadvance notice. Honduran officials hadbeenquoted inthepress
stating thatthismeasure wastoprotect domestic riceproducers fromimports during theharvest period.
Asanother example, itwasnotyetclearwhether theGovernment ofIndonesia planned toissueproposed
rules andtoallow sufficient timeforpublic comment onitsnewFood Code.
30. Therepresentative ofHonduras replied thathewould convey theconcerns raised totherelevant
authorities inHonduras. Therepresentative ofIndonesia stated thatthejointdecree bytheMinisters
ofHealth andAgriculture concerned theapplication oftheCodex Alimentarius standards inrespect
ofmaximum levels ofpesticides residues, inorder toprotect thehealth ofIndonesian consumers. The
Government ofIndonesia wasconsidering issuing technical regulations which would benotified to
other Members through theTBTandSPSprocedures.
Monitoring theUseofInternational Standards
31. Thedevelopment ofaprocedure tomonitor theuseofinternational standards, guidelines and
recommendations, asspecifically mandated inArticle 12:4oftheSPSAgreement, wasseenbyanumber
ofdelegations asoneoftheCommittee 'sprimary responsibilities. Although itwasagreed thatthe
information needed tomonitor harmonization should come from individual Members, veryfewhad
responded totheSecretariat 'srequest forspecific examples ofinternational standards whose useor
non-use hadasignificant impact ontrade (G/SPS/W/58).
32. SeveralMembersexpressedtheirappreciationoftheproposalmadebytheEuropeanCommunities
(G/SPS/W/51), which helped theCommittee focus onharmonization. However, therepresentative
ofArgentina viewed theinitial actions described inparagraphs 12,13and14,aswellasthesuggested
actions described initem15(b)and(e),asunrealistic.G/SPS/R/6
Page8
33. Thedelegation oftheUnited States presented theirproposal asonepractical andefficient method
forfulfilling theCommittee 'smandate inthisarea(G/SPS/W/76). Rather thanattempting todraw
upanexhaustive listofallinternational standards thathaveamajor impact ontrade, theUnited States
suggested togradually build upaninventory based, inwhole orinpart,ontheMembers 'responses
totheChairman 'srequest. Todothis,apermanent agenda itemcould beestablished andanannual
report prepared onthebasisofMembers 'submissions onthenon-use ofexisting international standards.
Thepurpose ofthisreport would betoidentify issues without necessarily trying toresolve them. In
addition, aperiodical report could beprepared ontheissues identified inG/SPS/W/76, Annex A.That
reportcouldbesubmittedtotheappropriateinternationalstandard-settingorganizationsforconsideration.
34. Many Members welcomed theUSpaper, noting thatitidentified theproblem atitsroots and
advocated aconstructive andpragmatic approach. They described theUSproposal asamove forward
from theory topractice intheareaofmonitoring theuseofinternational standards. Duetothelate
distribution ofthepaper, several participants reserved theirrighttocomment onitatthenextmeeting.
Therepresentative ofKorea alsosuggested thatfurther discussions would beneeded toclarify who
actually developed andoperated themonitoring system, asthisdidnotseem tobeexplicitly indicated
inthetextofSPSAgreement.
35. Therepresentative ofArgentina suggested thattheSPSCommittee should seektoinfluence,
through actions bygovernments, decisions taken inthethree relevant standard-setting organizations
(Codex, OIEandIPPC). Theunique characteristics oftheWTO, asacontractual, trade-based
organization endowed withanenforcement capacity, offered thepossibility fortheCommittee toseek
decisions intherespective standard-setting organizations, without interfering withtheirindependence
ortheirobjectives. Argentina sawtheneedforsuchfollow-up activities when, forexample, proposed
international standards werebeing blocked bycertain countries, orwhen nostandard existed, orwhen
astandard wassubject tomodification.
36. Supporting Argentina 'sviews, Chile sawtheUSproposal asproviding theopportunity for
newstandards developed byindividual countries tobevalidated bytherelevant standard-setting
organizations, onthebasisofproven scientific evidence, andsubsequently converted intointernationally
recognized standards. Therepresentative ofNewZealand stressed theneedforacareful coordination
oftheCommittee 'sactivities withthoseofthethreestandard-setting organizations. Theideaofagradual
process todevelop apilotproject wasparticularly supported bytheEuropean Communities, whereas
therepresentative ofCanada suggested thatprogress reviews becarried outperiodically toevaluate
theeffectiveness ofanypilotproject.
37. Therepresentative oftheUnited States agreed tocontinue todevelop, inconsultation withother
Members,morespecificproposalsforconsiderationbytheCommitteeatitsnextmeeting.TheChairman
requested Members tosubmit theirproposals wellinadvance ofthenextmeeting, sothatdelegations
could beready totakeadecision onsuchproposals.
Consistency
38. TheChairman reported ontheinformal consultations hehadheldwithinterested Members
withtheobjective ofproducing draftguidelines, forconsideration bytheCommittee, tofurther the
practical implementation oftheprovisions onconsistency indecisions ontheappropriate level of
protection, asrequired byArticle 5:5.Although some progress hadbeen made, further informal
consultations wereneeded. Theitemwaskeptontheagenda forthenextmeeting oftheCommittee.G/SPS/R/6
Page9
Development andApplication ofResidue Limits
39. Withregard tothepaper presented byAustralia onthedevelopment andapplication ofresidue
limits tofoodintrade(G/SPS/W/34), therepresentative oftheEuropean Communities stated thatthey
could fullysupport thewidest possible adoption atnational levelofCodex MRLs andthetaking into
account oftrading partners 'Good Agricultural andVeterinary Practices. However, heconsidered
thatthetextoftheAustralian paper could beimproved withcertain clarifications. Theremarks of
theEuropean Communities arecontained inG/SPS/GN/7. Therepresentative ofAustralia stated that
thepurpose ofthepaper wastoinvite theCommittee tolookatthedevelopment andapplication of
residue limits asanexample ofaparticular classofsanitary andphytosanitary measure, andthatit
maybeappropriate torevisit theissue atsome timeinthefuture.
Technical Assistance
40. Therepresentative ofThailand observed thattherecently published IPPC Guidelines forPest
RiskAnalysis weredifficult tounderstand andtherefore toimplement. Thisconcern wasshared by
otherASEAN members. Forthisreason, theThaidelegation requested theWTO Secretariat toorganize
atraining event in1997, onthetechnical andpractical aspects oftheIPPC Guidelines forPestRisk
Analysis, forASEAN member countries andIndochina.
41. Therepresentative oftheUnited States supported theconcept ofreciprocal cooperation and
coordination, andinformed theCommittee onthecooperative activities oftheUnited States. Among
these, theUnited States, incooperation withinternational standard-setting organisations, would be
involved inaworkshop withspecific emphasis onpestriskanalysis, which wasscheduled for
Asian/APEC countries inMarch 1997.
42. TheSecretariat reported thatanumber ofregional seminars hadbeen, andwould continue
tobe,carried outincooperation withtheCodex, OIEandIPPC. Some oftheseminars weresponsored
bythegovernment oftheUnited States, andassistance fromother Members would bewelcome. The
Secretariat alsocarried outanumber ofin-house activities, andparticipated, attheinvitation ofeither
national governments orprivate associations, indifferent workshops andseminars. With regards to
acalendar ofspecific workshops, ashadbeenpreviously requested byArgentina, information would
havetobeprovided byMembers. Alistofmeetings relevant tothework oftheSPSCommittee, based
oninformation provided bythestandard-setting organizations, wasavailable atthemeeting.
43. Therepresentative ofCodex stated thathisorganisation wascurrently involved with18
cooperation projects invarious regions oftheworld, andwithatotalof11workshops in1996related
totheimplementation oftheAgreement anditslinkage totheCodex standards. Therepresentative
oftheInternational Trade Centre (ITC) stated thatITCwascarrying outa3-year technical assistance
programontraining,trainingoftrainersanddevelopmentofguidelinesandvariousreferencedocuments.
ITCalsoorganised seminars ontheSPSandTBTAgreements andwould further pursue theseactivities
withCodex inAsiaandAfrica. Therepresentative oftheIPPC indicated thattheorganization 's
personnel problems affected training andtechnical assistance activities, buthoped thatthesituation
would change shortly. TheOIErepresentative noted thatOIE'snewtraining strategy would address
theregistration ofveterinary drugs, training interms ofepidemiology based onregional initiatives,
andwithspecific indications concerning surveillance activities andriskassessment. Interms oftechnical
assistance, anumber ofcountries hadspecifically requested assistance forthedevelopment ofnetworks
interms ofanimal health andepidemiology. OIEwasworking withother international organisations
andseveral countries onprograms fortheelimination ofFoot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD).G/SPS/R/6
Page10
44. Inresponse toarequest fromThailand, theCommittee agreed thattheheading forthisagenda
itemwould infuture read"technical assistance andcooperation".
Matters ofInterest Arising from theWork ofObserver Organizations
Revision ofIPPC
45. With regard todocuments G/SPS/W/65 andG/SPS/W/69, therepresentative ofUruguay
expressed theviewthatanydiscussions ornegotiations regarding thelegalframework ofthestandard-
setting organisations should beundertaken inthescope oftherespective organisations, leaving the
SPSCommittee thefreedom tomake thepertinent evaluations. Also, internal coordination wasnecessary
within Members tomaintain consistency between thedifferent international legal instruments. He
suggested thatthemodification oftheIPPC bemaintained ontheagenda oftheCommittee untilithad
beencompleted. Thefullstatement byUruguay isavailable indocument G/SPS/W/77.
46. TheIPPC Secretariat informed theCommittee thattechnical consultations among regional plant
protection organisations hadbeenheldinSeptember ontherevision oftheIPPC. Anarticle related
tothefunctions ofregional plant protection organisations wasdiscussed, along withthepossible
establishmentofaCommissiononPhytosanitaryMeasures.Recommendationsondefinitionsofquarantine
pestsandregulated non-quarantine pests, andontheeventual inclusion ofprovision onregulated non-
quarantine pests intheIPPC, hadbeensubmitted. Substantial differences remained oncertification
ofplants, plantproducts andother related matters, andonthenotion offreedom fromquarantine pests.
Itwashoped thatacompromise would bereached ontheoutstanding issues atatechnical consultation
tobeheldinJanuary 1997. Several delegates warned thatthetimeschedule fortherevision ofthe
IPPC wasverytight, andthatconsultations wereconducted byanexperts group without anydecision
power. Anyproposed newtextwould havetobereviewed bytheFAO during 1997, failing which,
theIPPC could notbeamended until1999.
47. Commenting onthedivergence inscope ofcoverage between theIPPC andtheSPSAgreement,
therepresentative ofAustralia wondered whether diseases which caused blemishes onfruits andreduced
theirvalue werewithin thescope oftheSPSAgreement. He,along withanumber ofother delegates,
considered thatitwasofgreatest importance toensure aclearunderstanding ofthescopes ofthetwo
agreements andtherelationship between them. Coordination could alsobereached ontheterminology
usedbybothagreements. Inreply toaquestion regarding therecent consultation inParisontheIPPC
revision, theSecretariat reported thatalthough there were some positive outcomes, thediscussions
weredifficult regarding thenotion of"alignment" ofscope between theSPSAgreement andtheIPPC,
andthereappeared tobeaconcern thattradeissues wereovertaking planthealth protection objectives.
48. Therepresentatives ofArgentina andMexico expressed theirconcerns thatindiscussion of
non-injurious pestsandotherrelated matters, theCommittee notenterintodiscussions ofenvironmental
issues which should beproperly discussed bytheCommittee onTrade andEnvironment.
Activities ofobserver organisations relevant totheCommittee
49. Therepresentative ofCodex reported thatatthe21st session oftheCodex Alimentarius
Commission, Codex members agreed torevise thenotification ofacceptance ofstandards toinclude
information about theuseofstandards andrelated texts, andtomake consequential revisions tothe
acceptance procedure guidelines. TheCodex Committee onGeneral Principles, atitsmeeting of25-28
November 1996 (inParis), would review theacceptance andnotification procedures inthecontext
oftheSPSandTBTagreements. Theobjective wastoprovide Codex members andtheWTO withG/SPS/R/6
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timely, science-based andup-to-date standards. Proposals toexpand theacceptance procedures tocover
allstandards, codes andothertextswould alsobeconsidered, aswellasprocedural changes toaccelerate
theelaboration ofstandards. Codex regional coordinating committees hadbegun identifying those
commodities ofimportance ininternational tradewhere theelaboration ofCodex standards would help
remove sanitary andtechnical barriers totrade. Inaddition, theCodex Secretariat waspreparing a
comprehensivereportontheuseofriskanalysisinCodex,forsubmissiontothenextCodexAlimentarius
Commission session inJune1997 (inGeneva). AJoint FAO/WHO expert consultation onrisk
management andfoodsafety matters wasscheduled for25-28 January 1997, tofurther progress work
onharmonized riskanalysis.
50. Therepresentative oftheOIEunderlined theupcoming activities oftheOIE,specifically those
related toBSE, FMD, equine diseases, epidemiology andguidelines onOIE'sriskassessment
responsibilities. Thefullstatement oftherepresentative ofOIEisavailable indocument G/SPS/GN/9.
51. TheWHO representative informed theCommittee thatcopies ofthereport oftheWHO
consultations onBSEwithregard tohuman health wereavailable fromtheDivision ofEmerging and
other Communicable Diseases Surveillance andControl ofWHO.
52. Therepresentative oftheIPPC informed theCommittee thatIPPC'sstandard-setting program
wasongoing, withtwofurther standards, oneonexpert certification andoneonsurveillance, being
submitted totheFAOCommittee onAgriculture, FAOCouncil andFAOconference nextyear. Other
standards which wereinvarious stages ofdevelopment addressed pest-free production sites, inspection
methodologies,eradication,importregulations,phytosanitarycertification,andsupplementarystandards
forpestriskanalysis.
Other Business
Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE)
53. Therepresentative oftheEuropean Communities informed theCommittee thatinJuly, the
EuropeanCommissionhadadopteddecision96/449/EC(G/SPS/N/EEC/30)onalternativeheattreatment
methods forprocessing animal waste, geared towards theinactivation ofSpongiform Encephalopathy
agents.FurthermeasureswerebeingstudiedbytheCommunities,whichwouldnotifyanysuchmeasures
induecourse totheSPSCommittee (seeG/SPS/GN/8). Therepresentative ofSwitzerland made a
statement onthecurrent situation ofBSEinSwitzerland, including thenewsanitary prescriptions,
culling andveterinary measures tobeadopted attheborder. Thefullstatement isavailable indocument
G/SPS/GN/5.
Consultations between theUnited States andKorea onKorea 'simport clearance procedures
54. Therepresentative oftheUnited States reported onthestatus ofitsongoing discussions with
Korea withrespect toKorea 'slongandburdensome import clearance procedures. TheUSgovernment
expected reforms toshorten import clearance processing inKorea andnotbeaccompanied bythe
development ofother practices notbased onscience ornotinconformity withinternational practices,
which undercut theinitial liberalisation effect. TheKorean government should alsoprovide WTO
Members withafullcomment period. Inresponse, therepresentative ofKorea noted thatanambitious
program hadbeenlaunched lastyear,aimed atstreamlining andharmonizing Korea 'ssanitary measures
withtherelevant international principles andstandards. Regarding theparticular issue ofinspection
andquarantine system, Korea planned toestablish theadvanced system bytheendof1996. Thefull
statement oftherepresentative ofKorea isavailable indocument G/SPS/GN/6.G/SPS/R/6
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Calendar ofmeetings
55. TheCommittee agreed onthefollowing calendar ofregular meetings for1997, onthe
understanding thatalldates weresubject toconfirmation andthatspecial meetings could bescheduled
asnecessary:
19-20 March 1997
1-2July1997
14-15 October 1997
Date andAgenda ofNext Meeting
56. Thefollowing provisional agenda forthemeeting of19-20 March 1997 (tentative date) was
agreed:
A. Adoption oftheagenda
B. Observers
C. Rules ofProcedure
D. Implementation oftheAgreement
(i) Information from Members
(ii) Specific trade concerns
E. Transparency provisions
(i) Consideration ofspecific notifications received
(ii) Anyother matters related totheoperation oftransparency provisions
F. Monitoring ofuseofinternational standards
G. Consistency
H. Technical assistance andcooperation
I. Matters ofinterest arising from thework ofobserver organizations
(i) Revision ofIPPC
J. Other business
K. Election ofChairperson
L. Dateandagenda ofnextmeeting