Bio-tech gets the nod

Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns and US Trade Representative Susan Schwab have praised the WTO ruling against EU-member state bans on agricultural biotech products. The European nations had placed a moratorium on even considering the products for import. At the request of the United States, Argentina, and Canada, the WTO ruled that moratorium is illegal.

"This decision affirms what the world's farmers have known about biotechnology for many years," Johanns said. "Since the first biotechnology crops were commercialized in 1996, we've seen double-digit increases in their adoption every single year. Biotechnology crops not only are helping to meet the world's food needs, they also are having a positive environmental impact on our soil and water resources.

"After eight years of legal wrangling and stalling by Europe, we are a step closer to clearing barriers faced by US agricultural producers and expanding global use of promising advances in food production," said Ambassador Schwab.