James M. Talent: “It is becoming increasingly obvious to everyone around the world that there is no reason, other than market protection…”

“It is becoming increasingly obvious to everyone around the world that there is no reason, other than market protection, not to permit a biotech product into Europe. It is not bad for the environment. It is good for the environment. In 2001 alone, biotechnology reduced the application of pesticides by 46 million pounds in addition to reducing soil erosion and creating an environment more hospitable to wildlife. It would be good for the environment of Europe and the world to allow a biotech product there. It would be good for them, frankly, to start using it in raising their own product. It is also increasingly obvious that there is no safety hazard. Practically everybody in America has eaten biotech corn or product made from biotech soybeans. There has not been a single case or suspicion of anybody being hurt by it. And, of course, there would not be because producers have been adjusting plant genetics for decades and decades and decades. This is just a new way of doing a very old and a time-honored thing that is very important to the production of the agriculture and to the advancement of human welfare. I congratulate the administration on filing this WTO action. It is, if anything, overdue.”