VZCZCXRO8187
RR RUEHRG
DE RUEHBR #2487/01 3282332
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 242332Z NOV 06
FM AMEMBASSY BRASILIA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 7488
INFO RUEHRI/AMCONSUL RIO DE JANEIRO 3415
RUEHRG/AMCONSUL RECIFE 5925
RUEHSO/AMCONSUL SAO PAULO 8704
RUEHBU/AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES 4433
RUEHAC/AMEMBASSY ASUNCION 5805
RUEHMN/AMEMBASSY MONTEVIDEO 6608
RUEHSG/AMEMBASSY SANTIAGO 5940
RUCPDO/USDOC WASHDC
RUEHRC/USDA WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 BRASILIA 002487 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
STATE PASS USTR - SCRONIN/MSULLIVAN 
USDOC FOR 4332/ITA/MAC/WH/OLAC/MWARD 
USDOC FOR 3134/ITA/USCS/OIO/WH/RD/SHUPKA 
USTDA FOR AMCKINNEY 
AID/W FOR LAC 
USDA FOR FAS 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: ETRD EAGR EIND BR
SUBJECT: EU DELEGATION SEEKS EMBASSY SUPPORT ON REGULATION OF 
GENERIC AGROCHEMICALS 
 
¶1.  (U)  Action Request - paragraph 3. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) On November 24, EU Econ Counselor Fabian Delcross 
contacted Emboff to enlist USG support in persuading the GOB to 
proceed with plans to tighten up current regulations governing the 
import of generic agrochemicals.  According to Delcross, the 
national agricultural lobby (CNA) was seeking to get the Executive 
Office of President Lula to reverse course and water down the 
measure currently under review.  Should this come to pass, Delcross 
argued, both European and U.S. chemical manufacturers would suffer 
as low-cost Asian generic manufacturers displaced us from the market 
and consumers might be subject to increased health risks from 
agricultural products imported from Brazil.  Delcross suggested that 
the Embassy consider engaging in a joint approach with the EU 
Delegation and its Member States to the Brazilians, or, at a 
minimum, make a separate supportive demarche to the GOB on this 
issues.  Emboff replied that prior to responding, he would first 
seek instructions from Washington. 
 
¶3.  (U)   Action Request --  Embassy requests guidance on how to 
respond to the EU delegation suggestion. 
 
¶4.   (SBU)  Delcross provided us with a copy of the following 
explanatory paper. 
 
Begin Text 
 
Registration and Sales License for Generic Agrochemicals in the 
Brazilian Market 
 
Currently, Brazil's registration law for agrochemicals follows FAO 
guidelines and is comparable to the legislation of most developed 
countries, e.g., and the United States.  The legislation is 
currently under review in order to include and allow the 
registration of technical and formulated generic products - the so 
called "similarity" rules.  This is necessary to comply with the 
Mercosul agreements on the harmonization of registration in the 
region. 
 
The revised version was discussed and a draft was agreed on after 
public consultation by the three ministers involved, Agriculture, 
Health, and Environment, which followed FAO criteria to ensure the 
quality of any product, including generic products.  It is now ready 
to be signed by the Presidency (Casa Civil), either as a draft law 
or as a medida provisoria [temporary measure]. 
 
Should the law enter into force in its current version, it would 
maintain fair competition in the market between R&D and generic 
companies and ensure that agricultural products exported to EU, USA 
and other more developed countries do not face restrictions due to 
residue of unknown  substances. 
 
However, due to the difficult situation agriculture and farmers have 
been facing over the past two seasons, several farmer associations 
and parliamentarians from the Agricultural Commission (both from the 
Senate and the Lower House), have put the Casa Civil under pressure 
to allow a more flexible registration law, centralizing the 
decisions on similarities only in the Ministry of Agriculture. 
According to them, such a measure would allow farmers to buy 
products in the Mercosul region at much lower prices than those paid 
in Brazil at the order of 30-40% (which is doubtful).  Should this 
happen, we anticipate a strong invasion of low quality and unknown 
agrochemicals entering the Brazilian market (without health and 
environmental profiles), especially those coming from Asian 
countries.  For obvious reasons, this would affect the interest of 
EU companies. 
 
A joint action might be appropriate to express concerns about a 
possible softening up of criteria for registration.  Minister Dilma 
Rousseff (head of the Casa Civil) seems to be the right person to 
receive representations expressing the EU's interest in a 
pesticide-registration that follows international rules (FAO minimum 
standards). 
 
End Text 
 
BRASILIA 00002487  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
CHICOLA