European Health Regulations and Brazil nuts: Implications for biodiversity conservation and sustainable rural livelihoods in the Amazon

The Brazil nut industry fits closely with the principal objectives of European policy on development co-operation (poverty reduction linked with environmental protection) and forest conservation (maintaining forest cover). However, European Regulation 1525-98 EC, which decreases acceptable levels of aflatoxins in Brazil nuts to 4 parts per billion, may cause a crash in the Brazil nut trade. Thus, European policies on food quality, development co-operation and forest conservation are likely to work in opposition. Brazil nut producer countries have questioned the legal basis of the Regulation in terms of scientific justification for the stricter limits on aflatoxin content and lack of conformity with international standards set by Codex Alimentarius. The EC has countered by calling for use of the precautionary principle. This paper documents the debate in the context of the World Trade Organisation’s Sanitary and Phytosanitary Agreement and discusses the implications for the relationship between agendas of trade, environment and sustainable development.