Biosafety: Ensuring the Safe Use of Modern Biotechnologies

This policy brief examines the international governance of biosafety, focusing on the 2000 Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety. It details the history of modern biotechnology, the tensions between exporting and importing nations regarding genetically modified organisms (GMOs), and the mechanisms used to manage the transboundary movement of living modified organisms (LMOs) to protect biodiversity and human health.

• The 2000 Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety establishes a framework for the safe transport, handling, and use of living modified organisms (LMOs) that may negatively impact biodiversity and human health. It specifically targets LMOs introduced into the environment and those intended for food, feed, or processing (LMO-FFPs), but excludes human pharmaceuticals and products derived from GMOs.
• The Protocol operationalizes the precautionary approach, allowing governments to restrict the import of an LMO even when there is a lack of full scientific certainty regarding its potential adverse effects on human health or biodiversity.
• Two primary procedures regulate the transboundary movement of LMOs: the advance informed agreement (AIA) for organisms intended for environmental introduction, which requires written notification and risk assessment, and a separate procedure for LMO-FFPs that requires parties to submit approval decisions and risk assessments to the Biosafety Clearing-House (BCH).
• The 2010 Nagoya-Kuala Lumpur Supplementary Protocol on Liability and Redress was created to address gaps in the original Protocol regarding environmental damage. It requires parties to provide response measures for biodiversity damage, though it relies heavily on varying national legislation.
• The development of modern biotechnology has been criticized for focusing on a limited number of crops that serve the markets of developed nations and private profit rather than the public good or the needs of developing countries.
• Socio-economic concerns regarding GMOs include the potential for a few companies to control the global agricultural market, the privatization of research, and negative impacts on smallholder farmers and Indigenous Peoples.
• The international regime on biosafety is linked to other standard-setting bodies recognized by the WTO, including the International Plant Protection Convention, the Codex Alimentarius Commission, and the World Organisation for Animal Health.

APA

(PhD),, E. T. (2021). Biosafety: Ensuring the Safe Use of Modern Biotechnologies. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/articles/deep-dive/biosafety-ensuring-safe-use-modern-biotechnologies

Chicago

(PhD),, Elsa Tsioumani. Biosafety: Ensuring the Safe Use of Modern Biotechnologies. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2021. https://www.iisd.org/articles/deep-dive/biosafety-ensuring-safe-use-modern-biotechnologies.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=(PhD), |first1=Elsa Tsioumani |title=Biosafety: Ensuring the Safe Use of Modern Biotechnologies |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=11 May 2021 |url=https://www.iisd.org/articles/deep-dive/biosafety-ensuring-safe-use-modern-biotechnologies |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{phd2021biosafety, author = {(PhD),, Elsa Tsioumani}, title = {{Biosafety: Ensuring the Safe Use of Modern Biotechnologies}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2021}, month = may, url = {https://www.iisd.org/articles/deep-dive/biosafety-ensuring-safe-use-modern-biotechnologies}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }