Introduction to the biosafety consensus documents

The OECD’s Working Group on Harmonisation of Regulatory Oversight in Biotechnology (the “Working Group”) comprises delegates from the 34 member countries of the OECD and the European Commission. Typically, delegates are from those government ministries and agencies which have responsibility for the environmental risk/safety assessment of products of modern biotechnology. The Working Group also includes a number of observer delegations and invited experts who participate in its work, such as Argentina, the Russian Federation, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (SCBD), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) and the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD (BIAC).