NEED FOR CODES OF CONDUCT ON BIOTECHNOLOGY, TRANSFER OF PLANT

GENETIC MATERIAL DISCUSSED AT FAO MEETING OF EXPERTS

Intellectual Property Rights and Impact of Modified

Organisms on Business, Human Health, Environment Also Under Review

ROME, 28 October (FAO) -- Genetic resources and intellectual property rights were top of the agenda during a recent meeting at the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) headquarters in Rome, where experts also discussed genetically modified organisms and their impact on business, human health and the environment.

The ninth session of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, held in mid-October, tackled issues such as biodiversity, biotechnology and ethics, and agreed on the importance of developing codes of conduct on biotechnology and the transfer of plant genetic material.

The Commission was warned that inappropriate granting of intellectual property rights could jeopardise public confidence in an international network of plant collections containing more than half a million samples.

Country members cited the example of a United States patent on the "Enola bean", and expressed support for the efforts of the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture, who have requested that the bean's patent be revoked.  They called upon the Director-General of the FAO to bring the matter to the attention of the United Nations General Assembly, the World Trade Organization and the World Intellectual Property Organization.

The plant collections, designed to preserve and maintain genetic diversity, are held in-trust by the international agricultural research centres of the consultative group of international agricultural research.

The genetic resources Commission threw its weight behind the global conservation trust, an international initiative launched during the Johannesburg summit on sustainable development to maintain the world's plant collections, a task estimated to cost some $260 million.

Member countries asked the Commission to examine the impact of biotechnology on health and the environment in order to create a code of conduct for biotechnology and to ensure that the benefits of those technologies reached farmers in both developing and developed countries.

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                                                            28 October 2002

The Commission decided to undertake an in-depth analysis of animal genetic resources.  The result of this study, a report entitled The State of the World's Animal Genetic Resources,will be published in the next three years.  The Commission also discussed the possibility of creating an international treaty on animal genetic resources similar to the recently approved Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.

The Commission also discussed a rapid alert and information system for emergencies linked to plant genetic resources, an information network to promote the interchange of technology and resources and the publication of the second report on The State of the World's Plant Resources.

The interim committee of the International Treaty for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture also held its first meeting recently in Rome.  The meeting, which centred on the development of agreements governing the transfer of genetic material, represented the first step towards the treaty coming into effect.

The treaty's aim is to guarantee the future availability of the diversity of plant genetic resources and promote the fair and equitable sharing of all benefits.  The agreement, approved in November 2001, will become legally binding when it has been ratified by at least 40 countries.  To date, 65 countries have signed the accord and it has been ratified, accepted or approved by eight.

NOTE:  For more information please see www.fao.org or contact Nuria Felipe-Soria, FAO Media Relations on +39 06 57055899.  Email:  nuria.felipesoria@fao.org.  To access the minutes of ninth session of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (please see:  http://www.fao.org/ag/cgrfa/docs9.htm.  A complete list of countries who have signed and or ratified the International Treaty on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture is available at:  http://www.fao.org/Legal/TREATIES/033s-e.htm.

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