The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety is a supplementary agreement to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). It was adopted in Montreal on 29 January 2000 and entered into force on 11 September 2003, ninety days after the fiftieth instrument of ratification was deposited. The Protocol takes its name from Cartagena, Colombia, where negotiations were originally scheduled to conclude in February 1999 before being suspended and resumed in Montreal.
The instrument governs the safe handling, transport, and use of living modified organisms (LMOs) — organisms produced through modern biotechnology that possess a novel combination of genetic material — when they cross international borders. Its central operational mechanism is the Advance Informed Agreement (AIA) procedure (Articles 7–10), which requires exporters to notify and obtain consent from the importing Party before the first intentional transboundary movement of an LMO intended for release into the environment. LMOs intended for direct use as food, feed, or for processing (LMO-FFPs) are handled under a separate, lighter procedure via the Biosafety Clearing-House (Article 11).
A defining feature is its explicit embrace of the precautionary approach, drawing on Principle 15 of the 1992 Rio Declaration. Under Articles 10(6) and 11(8), lack of scientific certainty about potential adverse effects does not prevent a Party from restricting import — a position that diverges from the stricter scientific-evidence standard typically applied under the WTO's SPS Agreement, creating ongoing trade-law tension.
The Protocol is supplemented by the Nagoya–Kuala Lumpur Supplementary Protocol on Liability and Redress, adopted in 2010 and in force since 5 March 2018, which addresses response measures where LMOs cause damage to biodiversity.
Major agricultural exporters including the United States, Argentina, and Canada are not Parties, though they participate in negotiations as observers. The Conference of the Parties to the CBD serves as the Meeting of the Parties (COP-MOP) to the Protocol.
Example
In 2002, Zambia invoked the Cartagena Protocol's precautionary approach to refuse genetically modified maize food aid offered by the United States during a regional famine, citing potential biodiversity and trade risks.
Frequently asked questions
No. The United States is not a Party because it has never ratified the parent Convention on Biological Diversity, though it participates as an observer in negotiations.
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