WORLD TRADE G/TBT/Notif.97.94
19March 1997
ORGANIZATION
(97-1127)
Committee onTechnical Barriers toTrade
NOTIFICATION
Thefollowing notification isbeing circulated inaccordance withArticle 10.6.
1. Member toAgreement notifying: NETHERLANDS
Ifapplicable, name oflocalgovernment involved (Articles 3.2and7.2):
2. Agency responsible: Ministry ofAgriculture, Nature Management andFisheries
Agency orauthority designated tohandle comments regarding thenotification canbe
indicated ifdifferent from above: National Enquiry Point
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X],2.10.1 [],5.6.2 [],5.7.1 [],other:
4. Products covered (HSorCCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading.
ICSnumbers maybeprovided inaddition, where applicable): Thedraft Order applies
toanimals oranimal products
5. Title, number ofpages andlanguage(s) ofthenotified document: Order Establishing the
DateofEntry intoEffect ofArticle 66.1Sub-section D,oftheHealth andWelfare Act
forAnimals (3pages inEnglish)
6. Description ofcontent: Thedraft Order provides fortheentry intoeffect ofalicence
procedure formanufacturing, transporting, having instock, making available, selling,
having instock with theintention ofselling, disposing oforimporting intothe
Netherlands animals oranimal products which have been subject tobiotechnological
treatment.
7. Objective andrationale: Inthecontext ofthepresent notification procedure we
reported thedraft decision laying down when Article 66,firstparagraph, partDofthe
Animal Health andWelfare Actwillcome intoforce asatechnical regulation insofar as
thisdraftdecision provides fortheintroduction ofalicensing system fortheimportation
intotheNetherlands ofanimals oranimal products towhich biotechnology applications
were made abroad.
./.G/TBT/Notif.97.94
Page2
7.Objective andrationale: (cont'd)
This licensing system isrelated tothecoming intoforce oftheDecree on
biotechnology applications toanimals, under which biotechnology applications toanimals
intheNetherlands havetobelicensed. Without alicensing system fortheimportation
intotheNetherlands, thenational licence obligation would bepointless asthenational
licence obligation caneasily bedodged bymaking biotechnology applications toan
animal justacross theborder andthenimport themodified animal intotheNetherlands.
Aswasalsopointed outintheexplanation tothedraft decision, thelicence
obligation entails thattheactofimportation assuchwillbereviewed. Inother words, it
willbereviewed whether theimportation ofagenetically modified animal willaffect the
animal 'shealth orwelfare, ormeets withethical objections. Ifanyofthese questions
areanswered negatively, thelicence willberefused.
8. Relevant documents: Chapter IV(Biotechnology) oftheHealth andWelfare Actfor
Animals (Stb. 1992, 805) andtheOrder of9December 1996 governing Rules on
Permits forBiotechnological Activities regarding Animals andontheBiotechnology
Commission forAnimals (Order onBiotechnology forAnimals).
9. Proposed dateofadoption:
Proposed dateofentry intoforce:20April 1997
10. Final dateforcomments: 14April 1997
11. Texts available from: National enquiry point [X]oraddress andtelefax number ofother
body: