SPS agreement

1
SPS agreement

• To explain the principles of the Agreement on the
  application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary
  Measures
• International Food Safety Consultancy
• www.international-food-safety.com

2
Key points

• The SPS Agreement introduces new disciplines that
  govern trading practices at the international
  level. It sets out the rights and
  responsibilities of WTO Members that wish to
  restrict imports in order to protect human,animal
  or plant life or health
• Restrictions should be the minimum necessary to
  achieve their objectives. They should be based on
  scientific principle and not maintained without
  sufficient evidence

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key points

• Governments must notify each other of SPS
  measures in the course of preparation
• Members are encouraged to adhere to international
  standards where they exist,although higher
  standards can be enforced if there is a
  scientific justification provided un accordance
  with internationally accepted risk assessment
  techniques

4
key points

• Members should seek to accept the SPS measures of
  other countries as equivalent even if different
  where they provide the same level of protection
  as their own regulations
• Control,inspection and approval procedures should
  be undertaken in no less favourable manner for
  imported products than for like domestic products

5
Introduction

• The Uruguay Round negotiations ,which were the
  first to deal with the liberalization of trade in
  agriculture products also included negotiations
  on reducing non-tariff barriers to international
  trade in agricultural products

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Introduction

• It resulted in two binding Agreements
• The Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and
  Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement) and
• The Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT
  Agreement)

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SPS -introduction

• Confirms the right of WTO Member countries to
  apply measures necessary to protect human ,animal
  and plant life and health
• It had become clear that national sanitary and
  phytosanitary measures had become whether by
  design or accident effective trade barriers

8
SPS-introduction

• The purpose of the SPS Agreement is to ensure
  that measures established by governments to
  protect human,animal and plant life and health
  are consistent with obligations prohibiting
  arbitrary or unjustifiable discrimination on
  trade between countries where the same conditions
  prevail

9
SPS-introduction

• It requires that ,with regard to food safety
  measures ,WTO Members base their national
  measures on international standards,guidelines
  and other recommendations adopted by the Codex
  Alimentarius Commission (CAC)

10
SPS-introduction

• For animal life and health ,measures should be
  based on those standards adopted and recommended
  by the International Office of Epizootics (OIE)
  and
• For plant life and health ,those standards and
  recommendation of the International Plant
  Protection Convention (IPPC) apply

11
SPS-introduction

• The Agreement also allows for countries to adopt
  stricter measures than those adopted by the so
  called three sisters (CAC-OIE-IPPC) if there is a
  scientific justification for doing so or if the
  level of protection afforded by the recognized
  standard setting organizations is inconsistent
  with the level of protection generally applied
  and deemed appropriate by the country concerned

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Article 1-general provisions

• Indicates that this Agreement applies to all
  sanitary and phytosanitary measures which affect
  international trade
• It informs us that definitions for term used in
  the Agreement are provided in Annex A and that
  the definitions shall apply to this Agreement and
  that all the Annexes are an integral part of this
  Agreement

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Annex -A

• Sanitary-Phytosanitary Measures
• -Any measure applied to Protect Animal or
• Plant life or Health within the territory of
  the Member from risks related to the entry
  ,establishment or spread of
• -pest or diseases
• -disease carrying organisms
• -disease causing organisms

14
continue

• Any measure applied to protect Human and Animal
  Life or Health within the territory of the Member
  from risk arising from
• -food additives
• -contaminants
• -toxins or
• -disease causing organisms in food
  ,
• beverages or feed stuffs

15
continue

• Any measure applied to protect Human Life or
  Health within the territory of the Member from
  diseases carried by
• -animals
• -plants
• -animal/plant product or
• -from the entry ,establishment or spread of
• pests

16
continue

• Any measure applied to prevent or limit damage
  from the entry,establishment or spread of pest

17
continue

• Sanitary and phytosanitary measures include all
  laws,degrees,regulation ,requirements and
  procedures related to
• 1-end product criteria
• 2-processes and production procedures
• 3-testing
• 4-certification and approval procedures

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continue

• 5-quarantine treatments (associated with
• animals and plant transport and the material
  required during their transport)
• 6-statistical methods
• 7-sampling procedures
• 8-methods for risk assessment
• 9-packaging and labeling

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continue

• Harmonization
• the establishment ,recognition and application
  of common sanitary and phytosantairy measures by
  the Members

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continue

• International standards,guidelines
  ,recommendations
• For food safety the terms international
  standards,guidelines and recommendations refer to
  those established by the Codex Alimentarius
  Commission relating to
• -food additives
• -veterinary drug and pesticide residues
• -contaminants
• -methods of analysis and sampling
• -codes and guidelines of hygienic practices

21
continue

• For animal health and zoonoses these same terms
  refer to the standards,guidelines and
  recommendation developed under the auspices of
  the International Office of Epizootics

22
continue

• For plant health they refer to international
  standards ,guidelines and recommendations
  developed under the auspices of the International
  Plant Protection Convention

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Article 2-basic rights

• Recognizes the rights of Member to establish
  sanitary and phytosanitary measures at the
  necessary level of protection for human,animal
  and plant life and health as long as they are not
  inconsistent with the provisions of this agreement

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Article 2 -continue

• Only those measures that are necessary to protect
  human ,animal and plant life and health are to be
  applied.They shall be based on scientific
  principles and shall not be maintained without
  sufficient evidence
• Measures are not to be arbitrary ,discriminatory
  ,unjustified ,unnecessary or disguised to trade

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Article 3-harmonization

• Requires members to base their sanitary and
  phytosanitary measures on international
  standards,guidelines and recommendations where
  they exists and if sufficient to provide the
  appropriate level of protection
• Members can establish a higher level of
  protection if scientific justification is
  provided in accordance with the requirements in
  article 5 (risk assessment)

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Article 3-continue

• Members are to fully participate in the relevant
  organizations
• SPS Committee is to develop procedures to monitor
  the process of international harmonization and
  coordinate efforts in this regards with the
  relevant international organizations

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Article 4-Equivalence

• It states that Members shall accept the sanitary
  and phytosanitary measures of other Members as
  equivalent even when these measures differ from
  their own or from those of other Members trading
  in the same products if the exporting country
  objectively demonstrates to the importing country
  that its measures achieve the importing country
  appropriate level of sanitary and phytosanitary
  protection

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Article 4 -continue

• The important factor is meeting the importing
  countries sanitary protection requirements rather
  than the means by which this is achieved
• This concept also serves as a basis for bilateral
  and multilateral agreement among trading partners
  on the basis of equivalence referred to as Mutual
  Recognition Agreements

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Article 5-risk assessment

• Measures are to be based on an assessment of the
  risk to human,animal and plant life and health
  using internationally accepted risk assessments
  techniques

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Article 5-continue

• Risk assessment should take into account
• -available scientific evidence
• -relevant processes and production methods
• -inspection sampling testing methods
• -prevalence of specific diseases or pest
• -existence of pest /disease free areas
• -ecological /environmental conditions
• -quarantine or other treatment

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Article 5-continue

• Risk assessment should take into account economic
  factors such as
• -cost of control or eradication
• -potential damage or loss of production /sale
• -cost effectiveness of alternative approaches

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Article 5-continue

• Sanitary and phytosanitaire measures should
  minimize negative trade effects
• Arbitrary or unjustified measures shall not be
  considered
• Members may provisionally adopt international
  standards
• Protection levels shall not be more trade
  restrictive than required to provide an
  Appropriate Level of Protection
• Explanation of the reasons for measures may be
  requested by Members

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Article 6-adoption to regional conditions

• Measures shall be adapted to specific areas of
  the country to minimize the impact on trade
• Pest/disease free areas shall be identified and
  recognized
• Low prevalence pest/disease shall be identified
• Exporting countries shall provide information on
  pest/disease free areas

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Article 7-transparency

• Members shall notify changes in their sanitary
  and phytosanitary measures and they are to
  provide this information in accordance with the
  provisions in Annex B
• Annex B
• -prompt publications of regulations
• -provision of sufficient lead time for comment
  from interested parties
• -establishment of an enquiry point
• -adherence to notification procedures
• -general reservations (related to confidential
  information)

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Article 7 -continue

• If proposed regulation is likely have a
  significant effect on trade of other Members
  then the following procedures must be followed
• -publice a notice
• -inform SPS committee
• -copies of proposed regulation
• -reasonable time for Members to comment

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Article 8 control and inspection/approval

• The procedures of Annex C apply when considering
  the operations of control,inspection and approval
  procedures including approval of the use of food
  additives or for establishing the tolerance
  levels for contaminants in food,beverages and
  feedstuffs

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Article 8-continue

• Annex C specifically states that the Members are
  to ensure that
• 1-control,inspection and approval procedures are
  completed promptly
• 2-standard or anticipated processing times are
  published or communicated
• 3-information required is limited to what is
  necessary for appropriate control, inspection
  and approval

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Article 8-continue

• 4.confidentiality of information for both
  imported and domestic products is respected
• 5.fees are equitable (domestic/imported)
• 6.a review system is established to review
  complaints about the procedures
• 7.the number of product specimens is limited to
  what is reasonable and necessary

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Article 8-continue

• 8.criteria for the siting of facilities for
  carrying out procedures or for the selection of
  samples should be the same for imported products
  as for the domestic products
• 9.when specifications are changed ,procedures are
  to be limited to those which are necessary to
  ensure the product meets the new specifications
  so that compliance with other specifications
  which have not changed is not altered

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Article 8-continue

• Annex C also addresses the situation where a food
  additive is not permitted or its use is limited
  to the degree that it restricts access to markets
  by exporting Members

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Article 9-technical assistance

• The members agree to facilitate the provision of
  technically assistance especially to developing
  countries either bilaterally or through the
  appropriate international organizations
• Assisting can be given in the areas of processing
  technologies,research and infrastructure
  including the establishment of national
  regulatory bodies
• The WTO also provide technical assistance in the
  form of its Technical Cooperation Activities

42
Article 10-special and differential treatment

• Consideration of the needs of developing and
  especially the least developed countries when
  preparing and implementing sanitary and
  physanitary measures by providing longer
  timeframes for compliance on products of interest
  .
• SPS committee can grant developing and least
  developed Members time limited exceptions

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Article 11-consultations and dispute settlement

• In case of a dispute involving scientific or
  technical issue, a panel should seek advice from
  experts chosen by the panel in consultation with
  the parties to the dispute
• The panel may also when it deems it appropriate
  establish an advisory technical experts group or
  consult the relevant international organizations

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Article 12-administration

• Establishing of Committee on Sanitary and
  Phytosanitary Measures for a regular forum of
  consultations
• Committee implement the provisions of the
  Agreement and the furtherance of its objectives
  ,particularly the objective of harmonization

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Article 13-implementation

• National governments are fully responsible for
  observance of obligations under this Agreement
• To ensure this level of responsibility ,national
  governments must formulate and implement positive
  measures and mechanisms to support the observance
  of the provisions of the Agreement by other than
  central government bodies
• Article 14final provisions
• The final provision of this Agreement allows the
  least developed country Member to delay
  application of the provisions of this Agreement
  for a period of five years following its date of
  entry into force with respect to their sanitary
  or phytosanitary measures affecting importation
  or imported products

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Article 14-continue

• Other developed country Members may delay
  application of the provisions of this Agreement
• -providing a Member with information and an
  explanation as to the reasons for a sanitary or
  phytosanitary measure
• -transparency,enquiry point and notification
  procedures for two years following the date of
  entry into force of this Agreement with respect
  to their existing sanitary or phytosanitary
  measures affecting importation products,where
  such application is prevented by a lack of
  technical expertise,technical infrastructure or
  resources