TRANSATLANTIC PLATFORM ON CONSUMER CONCERNS AND INTERNATIONAL TRADE

Although the society is still in statu nascendi, the Board has supported the foundation of an additional new organisation: The Transatlantic Platform on Consumer Concerns and International Trade. Consumer concerns in this area are related to the safety of agri-food products for humans, animals and the environment, as well as the social and ethical implications of certain agri-food production methods. The events of recent years have shown that these consumer concerns create difficulties for national governments and international relations. They emphasise cultural differences between nations and create social and political pressure on national governments to lay down restrictive, trade distorting measures.

The EurSafe Board agreed, therefore, with the idea that it is vital to reconsider the dynamic relationship between national governments, civil society and the market. This has to be done through an interdisciplinary approach, involving experts from many disciplines: technical and hygiene experts, veterinarians, public administration experts, lawyers, philosophers, ethicists, sociologists and economists. Thus, the society has supported the foundation of a platform which will focus on issues such as international trade liberalisation, the cultural identity of distinct communities and the functioning of the democratic nation state.

The Transatlantic Platform held its first meeting on 15-17 June 2000 in Lelystad (NL) and was attended by more than 50 people from Europe, the USA, and as far afield as New Zealand, Canada, and the Philippines. The meeting was organised by the EurSafe Secretariat in co-ordination with the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature Management and Fisheries, Wageningen University and Research Centre, and the Centre for Bio-ethics and Health Law of Utrecht University.

Many different organisations in the field of agri-food were represented at the meeting, such as the USDA, the OECD, the FAO and the Danish Ministry of Agriculture. The meeting was announced in the EurSafe Newsletter and the Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics. At the meeting ideas for further research in the field were discussed and based upon these discussions the organisers hope to publish a research agenda detailing specific activities that will help to foster academic research and debate on the ways that International Trade, Consumer Concerns, Global Justice and Cultural and Personal Identity can be reconciled. The EurSafe Secretariat holds the secretariat of the Platform.

Report of the First Meeting

In 2001, the Executive Committee plans to support the new activities of the Platform. The EurSafe secretariat will run the platform until at least January 2001, with the hope that funds will be available for an extension of this period. EurSafe promotes close links between its (institutional) members and the platform and as far as it is able will support its future activities. The secretariat intends to publish the platform's activities in the EurSafe Newsletter on a regular basis.