Six declarations were signed by the agriculture ministers of Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Chile at the conclusion of the 36th meeting of the Southern Agricultural Council (CAS) last Friday (21) in Buenos Aires. The themes of the documents were to work by common approach in the region of maximum residue limits and in relation to antimicrobial resistance, regulatory convergence, access to phytogenetic resources, gene editing techniques, and access to markets for genetically modified products.
Minister Blairo Maggi (Agriculture, Livestock and Supply) noted that there are 1,450 inputs used in this set of countries, whose usage rules do not coincide with those in Brazil. He said that “in Brazil are beginning tests of products imported from Argentina and Paraguay. And of course, if we do not have a harmonization will give problem. We have to anticipate. And the proposal is to adopt in Mercosur limits determined by the Codex Alimentarius “. In each country, the indices are defined by health-related agencies. In Brazil, the amount of chemical residues allowed in food is determined by Anvisa.
At the suggestion of Minister Blairo Maggi, a survey was made on the limit of residues of input molecules used in production in each of these countries. And the differences in detected indexes reached more than 70%. Some indices are above the values established by Codex, and in some cases there are products used in neighboring countries, but are prohibited in Brazil. For this problem to be addressed, it must be discussed and approved by Mercosur, the minister said. “We are making a provocation here in CAS to try to change a practical situation that needs to be resolved. We want to harmonize legislation and be faster in the trade.”
Research presented during the two-day meeting showed that South American countries attach great importance to the eradication of foot-and-mouth disease, but need to increase attention to other diseases and antimicrobial resistance. Brazil, however, appears with advanced program and laboratories prepared to deal with antimicrobials.
The minister suggested that CAS member countries enhance safety in the control of classical and African swine fever because of the outbreak that hit Eastern European countries, Russia and China. The alert is important so that the disease does not reach the South American continent.
The ministers also signed a letter to be sent to the Chinese Minister of Agriculture, inviting them to meet with the CAS ministers in order to speed up the approval of new GMO events. They are proposing a meeting in early November at China International Import and Export, the world’s largest agricultural fair, or at the G20 ministers’ meeting at the end of the month.
Critical points were also discussed in the intraregional trade in agricultural products, the establishment of a group on honey, a technical assessment for the movement of standing cattle among the countries of the region, attention to risk-related border controls on classical and African swine fever, and study on good production practices used. In November, CAS ministers meet again.
This text was translated by machine from Brazilian Portuguese.