ASA met with representatives from USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service, the office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), and the State Department Friday to discuss an upcoming American delegation to Durban, South Africa later this month that will address the advancement of low-level presence (LLP) policies. Joining ASA at the meeting were Deputy Under Secretary for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services Darci Vetter, USTR Ambassador Isi SIddiqui, and FAS Administrator and mission leader Phil Karsting, and many others.

ASA Vice President Ray Gaesser will attend the Durban conference, along with a trade and development mission to South Africa led by Deputy Secretary Krysta Harden. For the Durban conference, ASA is urging a high level of ambition from the federal contingent that results in a forward-learning conversation to build common ground on how to manage LLP situations; an agreement on precise definitions for Adventitious Presence and LLP and recognition that LLP can occur as a result of many factors including asynchronous approval, and isolated foreign approval; the  incorporation of Codex Guidelines for the Conduct of Food Safety Assessment of Foods Derived from Recombinant-DNA Plants (CAC/GL 45-2003) into domestic and multi-national risk assessment measures in application to LLP policy; the consideration for the role of the private sector starting with the seed developer through producers and consumers; and the development of risk proportionate solutions that provide for flexibility to accommodate statutory or regulatory limitations and commercial practicality.