ABSTRACT
Decisions to ban or restrict particular products or technologies often involve risk-related claims, for example in the case of hormones in beef or genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Such disputes have triggered comparisons about the nature of the risk assessments conducted on both sides of the Atlantic, in particular the question of which trade block might be more precautionary, or whether one trade block is inherently more precautionary (Löfstedt and Vogel 2001; Wiener and Rogers 2002; Wiener et al. 2011; Vogel 2012). The programme of the topical conference organised at Maastricht University on 14–15 April 2010 highlighted, in the author’s view rightly so, the fact that ‘European and WTO rules put a focus on science in their attempt to ensure that measures adopted by Member States and/or the EU are inspired by genuine non-trade rather than protectionist motives and intentions’. This chapter takes a closer look at the process put in place to mobilise science and translate genuine non-trade concerns into workable measures in a sector of high value for the global economy and public health, namely, pharmaceuticals.
