POLAND'S VIEW ON UNAPPROVED BIOTECH VARIETIES IN U.S.

UNCLAS WARSAW 000915 STATE FOR EEB/TPP/ABT, EUR/ERA STATE PASS TO USTR USDA FOR FAS/OSTA NAIM OCRA/NENON, KOWALSKI BRUSSELS FOR AG MINISTER COUNSELOR, EU MEMBER STATES FOR AGR AND ECON SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAGR ECON ETRD PL SUBJECT: POLAND'S VIEW ON UNAPPROVED BIOTECH VARIETIES IN U.S. SOYBEAN SHIPMENTS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAGR ECON ETRD PL REF: STATE 86566 ¶1. Summary. Poland likely supports, or will abstain from voting, on suspended U.S. soybean shipments due to the EU zero tolerance for unapproved biotech varieties -- if the September 7 Ag Ministers Council meeting discusses the issue. End summary. ¶2. August 28, Ag Counselor delivered reftel demarche to Ministry of Agriculture, Department for Animal and Feed Products, Director Wojciech Wojtyra. Wojtyra commented that the Ministry had no position on the low level presence issue. Wojtyra added that the Polish Grain and Feed Producers Association and others had written the Ministry asking for support to raise the zero tolerance limit to a workable level. Wojtyra said that there had been no communication from the Commission or other member states to Poland about the issue. ¶3. September 4, Ag Counselor met with member companies' representatives of the Polish Grain and Feed Producers Association. Contacts reported that in their view the Ministry will either abstain or support the issue if raised. Called for comment, MinAg declined to confirm how it might vote. ASHE