Biosafety and Agriculture

Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, 2013, Ruth Raymond and Amanda Dobson, Bioversity International,   "The Youth Guide to Biodiversity" 1st Edition (Chapter 9) Youth and United Nations Global Alliance. Reproduced with permission.

Chapter 9. Ulrika Nilsson, CBD. Verbatim.

For over 10 000 years, farmers have selected and saved their best seeds and animals for breeding so that future generations of plant varieties and animal breeds would have better qualities in terms of size, taste, growth rate or yield. In recent years, new techniques, called modern biotechnology, have allowed scientists to modify plants, animals and micro‑organisms at rates faster than they can with conventional methods.

Scientists can take a single gene from a plant or animal cell or from a bacterium and insert it in another plant or animal cell resulting in a living modified organism (LMO). LMOs are commonlyknown as genetically modified organisms (GMOs), even though LMOs and GMOs have different definitions. Although modern biotechnology can potentially improve human well-being, for example by improving agricultural productivity, there is concern about possible risks that LMOs may pose to biodiversity and human health.

In response, world leaders adopted the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, a supplementary agreement to the Convention on Biological Diversity. The Protocol works to protect biodiversity by encouraging the safe transfer, handling and use of LMOs. It does so by establishing rules and procedures for regulating the import and export of LMOs from one country to another. As of October 2011, 161 Parties (160 countries and the European Union) have adopted the Protocol.

The Protocol describes two main procedures. One is for LMOs intended for direct introduction into the environment, such as live fish and seeds. It is called the Advance Informed Agreement (AIA) procedure. The other is for LMOs used for food, feed or processing (LMOs-FFP), such as tomatoes. Under the first procedure, countries must assess if the LMOs could pose any risks. Based on the results of the risk assessment, a country can decide whether or not to import the LMO.

Under the second procedure, countries that approve LMOs-FFP for domestic use and placement on the market must inform other countries and provide relevant information through a central information exchange mechanism known as the Biosafety Clearing‑House (BCH ). If a country decides to import an LMO that is to be released into the environment, it must communicate its decision and a summary of the risk assessment to the BCH . Countries must also make sure that LMOs shipped from one country into another are safely handled, transported and packaged. Shipments of LMOs must be accompanied by documents that clearly specify their identity and any requirements for their safe handling, storage, transport and use.

If you’re interested in biosafety issues, you can encourage your government to become a Party to the Protocol if it is not already, inform others about biosafety issues, discuss possible public educational activities on biosafety with your teachers, design awareness material on biosafety to use in your community, or create a youth biosafety network to exchange information.