REACTION TO DECEMBER 28 DECREE TO

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ROME 000134 SIPDIS STATE PASS USDA FOR HEGWOOD USDA FOR FAS/OA/CHAMBLISS AND SLUTSKY; COTS/BLUM;ITP/SHEIKH AND MACKE; FAA/NE/WILSON; DOS/EB/TPP/ATT; EUR/ERA; E-ASHUB; EB-GADSDEN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAGR ETRD EU ETRD EU IT ICSCA ITEAGR ICSCA SUBJECT: REACTION TO DECEMBER 28 DECREE TO SURVEY GMO-FREE SUPPLIES OF SOY AND CORN SEED FOR PLANTING; PM OFFICE MADE AWARE OF U.S. UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 02 ROME 00134 01 OF 02 100812Z CONCERNS. SENSITIVE REFS. ROME 42 AND ROME 68 ¶1. SUMMARY. CONFAGRICOLTURA, ONE OF ITALY'S LEADING FARMER ORGANIZATIONS, TOLD AG MINCOUNSELOR THAT IT HAS A COMMITMENT FROM AGMINISTER ALEMANNO TO INTRODUCE A TOLERANCE OF 0.3-0.5 PERCENT FOR ADVENTITIOUS PRESENCE IN CORN AND SOYBEAN SEEDS FOR PLANTING SHOULD THE ITALIAN SEED CERTIFICATION ASSOCIATION (ENSE) CONCLUDE THERE ARE INADEQUATE SUPPLIES OF GM-FREE CONVENTIONAL CORN AND SOYBEAN SEEDS AVAILABLE TO MEET ITALIAN NEEDS. CONFAGRICOLTURA CAUTIONED THAT RIVAL FARM ORGANIZATION, COLDIRETTI, IS STRONGLY AGAINST ANY TOLERANCE LEVEL FOR ADVENTITIOUS PRESENCE AND WAS SEEKING TO CONVINCE ALEMANNO THAT ADEQUATE SUPPLIES OF GMO-FREE CONVENTIONAL SEEDS EXIST. CONFAGRICOLTURA BELIEVES THE PROSPECTS FOR ALEMANNO IMPLEMENTING A TOLERANCE OF 0.3-0.5 PERCENT ARE PRETTY GOOD, PROVIDED THAT THE MAJOR SEED SUPPLING COMPANIES (I.E. PIONEER, MONSANTO, AND SYNGENTA) REMAIN UNIFIED AND REAFFIRM THAT THEY CANNOT GUARANTEE ZERO ADVENTITIOUS PRESENCE IN THEIR CONVENTIONAL SEEDS. CONFAGRICOLTURA ALSO PUBLISHED A PRESS RELEASE TODAY STATING ITS OPPOSITION TO ANY UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 03 ROME 00134 01 OF 02 100812Z LOWERING SEED QUALITY STANDARDS. IN A SEPARATE MEETING, CDA POPE SHARED U.S. CONCERNS WITH PM DIPLOMATIC ADVISOR CASTELLENETTA. END SUMMARY. MEETING WITH CONFAGRICOLTURA ¶2. AGMIN COUNSELOR, AG ATTACHE MURPHY, AND SENIOR AGRICULTURAL SPECIALIST MET JAN.9 WITH THE PRESIDENT AND SENIOR LEADERS OF CONFAGRICOLTURA, ONE OF THE THREE MAJOR ITALIAN FARMERS ORGANIZATIONS. AGMIN COUNSELOR LEARNED THAT ITALIAN MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE GIANNI ALEMANNO CONSULTED WITH ALL THREE ORGANIZATIONS, COFAGRICOLTURA, COLDIRETTI, AND CONFEDERAZIONE ITALIANA AGRICOLTORI, BEFORE ISSUING THE DECEMBER 28, 2001 DECREE (SEE REFTELS). ACCORDING TO CONFAGRICOLTURA, ALEMANNO WAS PREPARED AT THAT TIME TO IMPLEMENT A TOLERANCE FOR ADVENTITIOUS PRESENCE OF 0.3-0.5 PERCENT FOR CORN AND SOYBEAN SEEDS. HOWEVER, COLDIRETTI, THE LARGEST OF ITALY'S THREE FARMER ORGANIZATIONS, EXPRESSED VEHEMENT OPPOSITION, FORCING ALEMANNO TO TAKE A MORE CIRCUITOUS TACK IN ORDER TO GARNER SUFFICIENT POLITICAL COVER. ALEMANNO THUS AGREED WITH THE THREE FARM LEADERS FOR THE MINAG'S SEED AGENCY, ENSE, TO DETERMINE WHETHER THERE ARE SUFFICIENT SUPPLIES OF CONVENTIONAL SEEDS AVAILABLE WITH ZERO ADVENTITIOUS PRESENCE. UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 04 ROME 00134 01 OF 02 100812Z ¶3. THE DEC. 28 DECREE SURPRISED CONFAGRICOLTURA IN THAT THEIR DISCUSSION WITH ALEMANNO DID NOT INCLUDE THE POSSIBILITY OF LOWER STANDARDS FOR GERMINATION RATES. THE PUBLISHED VERSION ADDS THE CLAUSE RELAXING STANDARDS, A LIKELY CONCESSION TO COLDIRETTI AND OTHERS, BUT CONFAGRICOLTURA DISCOUNTS THIS AS A LIKELY SCENARIO. ¶4. CONFAGRICOLTURA WAS RELATIVELY CONFIDENT THAT ALEMANNO WOULD IMPLEMENT A TOLERANCE FOR ADVENTITIOUS PRESENCE WITH ONE CAVEAT-- THE MAJOR SEED SUPPLIERS MUST REMAIN UNITED AND REAFFIRM THEY CANNOT GUARANTEE ZERO PRESENCE FOR GMOS IN THEIR CONVENTIONAL SEEDS. SHOULD ENSE CONCLUDE THAT SUFFICIENT SUPPLIES OF GMO-FREE CONVENTIONAL SEED EXIST, COLDIRETTI IS LIKELY TO WIN THE DAY. CONFAGRICOLTURA SOUGHT ASSURANCES THAT PIONEER AND THE OTHER SUPPLIERS WOULD MAKE CLEAR THEIR INABILITY TO GUARANTEE ZERO ADVENTITIOUS PRESENCE. (FYI, EMBASSY HAS SHARED CONFAGRICOLTURA'S CONCERNS AND RECOMMENDATION WITH PIONEER AND OTHER SUPPLIERS.) CONFAGRICOLTURA ACKNOWLEDGED THAT UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED PTQ0677 PAGE 01 ROME 00134 02 OF 02 100812Z ACTION EUR-00 INFO LOG-00 AID-00 CEA-01 CIAE-00 COME-00 CTME-00 DODE-00 ITCE-00 SRPP-00 EB-00 EXME-00 E-00 UTED-00 VC-00 FRB-00 H-01 TEDE-00 INR-00 ITC-01 L-00 AC-01 NSAE-00 NSCE-00 OES-01 OMB-01 OPIC-01 PC-01 PM-00 ACE-00 SP-00 SSO-00 SS-00 STR-00 TEST-00 TRSE-00 USIE-00 SNIS-00 NISC-00 PMB-00 DRL-02 G-00 SAS-00 /010W -------------- 55AE42 100812Z /38 R 100805Z JAN 02 FM AMEMBASSY ROME TO SECSTATE WASHDC 1583 USDA FAS WASHDC 1960 INFO EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE UNCLAS SECTION 02 OF 02 ROME 000134 SIPDIS STATE PASS USDA FOR HEGWOOD USDA FOR FAS/OA/CHAMBLISS AND SLUTSKY; COTS/BLUM;ITP/SHEIKH AND MACKE; FAA/NE/WILSON; DOS/EB/TPP/ATT; EUR/ERA; E-ASHUB; EB-GADSDEN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAGR ETRD EU ETRD EU IT ICSCA ITEAGR ICSCA SUBJECT: REACTION TO DECEMBER 28 DECREE TO SURVEY GMO-FREE SUPPLIES OF SOY AND CORN SEED FOR PLANTING; PM OFFICE MADE AWARE OF U.S. UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 02 ROME 00134 02 OF 02 100812Z CONCERNS. SMALL PRODUCERS COULD COME UP WITH SMALL SUPPLIES OF NON-GMO SEEDS, BUT THAT NONE OF THE MAJOR SEED COMPANIES CAN DO SO IN QUANTITIES WHICH ARE SUFFICIENT FOR PLANTING ITALY'S CUSTOMARY 1.3 MILLION HECTARES OF CORN. ¶5. CONFAGRICOLTURA ALSO INDICATED THAT IF ALEMANNO IMPLEMENTS A TOLERANCE OF ADVENTITIOUS PRESENCE IT WOULD LIKELY ENTAIL A 0.3 PERCENT TOLERANCE FOR CORN SEED AND A 0.5 PERCENT TOLERANCE FOR SOYBEAN SEED. CONFAGRICOLTURA UNDERSTANDS THAT THERE WOULD BE NO MENTION OF SPECIFIC EVENTS (APPROVED VS. UNAPPROVED). CORN SEED SUPPLIES ARE OF PARTICULAR CONCERN TO CONFAGRICOLTURA. SOYBEAN SEEDS ARE OF LESSER CONCERN GIVEN SOYBEAN PLANTINGS IN ITALY NEXT SEASON ARE EXPECTED TO DECLINE TO LESS THAN 200,000 HECTARES BECAUSE OF LOWER PRICES. CDA MEETING WITH PM DIPLOMATIC ADVISOR CASTELLENETTA ¶6. THE CHARGE, IN A CALL ON PM DIPLOMATIC ADVISOR CASTELLENETTA, RAISED THE TALKING POINTS IN REFTEL (ROME 68). HE STRESSED AS WELL THAT WE ARE APPRECIATIVE OF THE INITIAL STEPS TAKEN BY THE PM'S OFFICE TO REOPEN UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 03 ROME 00134 02 OF 02 100812Z DISCUSSION ON AGRICULTURAL BIOTECHNOLOGIES AND THE PM'S DIRECTION THAT PROFESSOR LEONARDO SANTI SHOULD EXPLORE WITH US AN AGREEMENT ON BIOTECH COOPERATION SIMILAR TO THE ONE WE CONCLUDED LAST SUMMER ON CLIMATE CHANGE RESEARCH. THE CHARGE ALSO MENTIONED THAT WE HAD RECEIVED THE ENVIRONMENT MINISTRY'S REQUEST TO CONSIDER AN INFORMAL BILATERAL DISCUSSION OF GMOS IN NEW YORK AT THE END OF JANUARY. ¶7. CASTELLANETA, WHO WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN ACHIEVING THE CLIMATE CHANGE RESEARCH ACCORD, KNEW ABOUT AND WAS POSITIVE TOWARD PROF. SANTI'S APPROACH TO THE EMBASSY. HE DID NOT SEEM TO BE AWARE OF THE ENVIRONMENT MINISTRY'S PROPOSAL BUT LIKED IT. ¶8. CHARGE CONTINUED THAT, DESPITE THESE POSITIVE SIGNS, THE USG IS PUZZLED AT AND CONCERNED ABOUT AG MINISTER ALEMANNO'S DECEMBER 28 DIRECTIVE. HANDING CASTELLANETA A COPY, THE CHARGE NOTED THAT OUR READING OF THE DECREE INDICATES THAT IT WOULD ERECT NEW BARRIERS TO GMOS. THIS WOULD NOT BE IN KEEPING WITH DISCUSSIONS BETWEEN PRESIDENT BUSH AND PM BERLUSCONI AND OTHER EXCHANGES WE HAVE HAD WITH MUCH OF THE GOI. CASTELLANETA SUGGESTED THAT PERHAPS ALEMANNO WAS TRYING TO DEMONSTRATE THAT IT IS NOT POSSIBLE TO GET DOWN TO ZERO PERCENT GMO CONTENT IN SEEDS. UNCLASSIFIED PAGE 04 ROME 00134 02 OF 02 100812Z CHARGE REPLIED THAT HE HOPED THAT WAS THE INTENT, BUT THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE DECREE'S APPEARANCE AND OUR READING OF IT CONCERN US. CASTELLANETA ADMITTED THAT HE WAS NOT SURE BUT PROMISED TO LOOK INTO IT. (NOTE: LATER, A CASTELLANETA AIDE CALLED CHARGE TO SAY THAT HE ALREADY HAD BEEN IN TOUCH WITH ALEMANNO'S OFFICE TO GET DETAILS. END NOTE.) POPE UNCLASSIFIED > 2002ROME00134 - Classification: UNCLASSIFIED