Commissioner vows to protect food safety in US trade talks

(ATHENS) - The European Union must take a strong stance on food safety and environmental protection in landmark trade talks with the United States, the EU's agriculture commissioner said on Tuesday.

"Europe should not be defensive in these negotiations," commissioner Dacian Ciolos told reporters at an informal meeting of EU ministers.

"It was underlined by many ministers that in these negotiations we have to ensure the preservation of our values and our agro-food model, based on quality, food safety ... environment, animal welfare," Ciolos said.

"These values and principles have to be the basis of these negotiations," he added.

The European Union and the United States are negotiating what could be the world's largest free trade agreement, known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).

The mammoth undertaking is fraught with complex issues over market access and regulation.

These include a long-standing US-EU dispute over the safety of genetically modified organisms used in US crops, including soybeans and corn, and US poultry and meat.

Ciolos said there had been a "general" discussion of the TTIP in Athens, where the main item on the agenda was crop diversity.

EU officials note that locally adapted farming systems are less vulnerable to diseases or climatic events, and that local genetic resources should be conserved to preserve this advantage.

"Diversity increases adaptability, it is a requirement for viable agriculture in the face of coming climate change," said Greek Agriculture Minister Athanassios Tsaftaris.

Informal Meeting of Ministers for Agriculture and Fisheries (AGRI)