U.S. Trade Rep Vows to Push Back on GMOs

The Trump administration will attack overseas regulations that restrict the export of GMO crops and other products resulting from American technological innovation, said U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.

Lighthizer spoke at the first meeting of a newly created interdepartmental task force on rural America. He said the U.S. will bring cases to the World Trade Organization and will “insist that any barrier be science-based.”

He said if other countries unfairly block U.S. exports because of the technology behind them, “there is a reluctance to incorporate that technology into our own production at home.”

Dozens of reviews have maintained that genetically engineered crops are safe to eat, but they still face significant public opposition in Europe and elsewhere.

President Trump created the task force on rural America to look for legislative, regulatory, and policy changes that promote agriculture. First on the list of the task force’s priorities is removing barriers to economic prosperity. Second on the list is to advance agricultural technology.

Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue, who chairs the task force, said rural America lags urban areas in recovering from the 2008-2009 recession. One in four rural children lives in poverty, the highest rate in three decades, he said.

“The president understands that prosperity and recovery have not been uniform,” Perdue said. “We’ve got technology issues, we’ve got infrastructure issues, we’ve got health issues.”

Source: Successful Farming