Bill 152.

Summary.

The bill defines six terms for its application. Animal food products include foods from animal sources, such as meat, fish, eggs and dairy products; plant food products include vegetables, fruit, cereals, nuts, seeds and legumes. It defines phytosanitary permits in terms of methods and techniques for preventing, controlling, eliminating or curing plant diseases. It describes food safety as the conditions, measures and practices needed during food production, storage, distribution and preparation to prevent contamination and illnesses associated with consumption.

The bill also defines food sovereignty as peoples’ right to nutritious, culturally appropriate and accessible food produced sustainably and ecologically, and their right to decide their own food and production system. That definition covers relations among food producers, distributors and consumers, marketing and distribution systems, and state food policies. Agricultural production refers to plant and animal production in the primary sector, divided into farming and livestock activities. The proposed definition of an agricultural production system encompasses inputs, techniques, labor, land ownership and the organization of the population to produce agricultural and livestock goods and services.

Article 2 would add Chapter XII, on offenses against food security, to Title IX on offenses against collective security in Law 14 of April 26, 2007, which adopts the Criminal Code (Código Penal). Proposed Article 337-A would impose imprisonment of six to eight years on anyone who brings plant or animal food products intended for human consumption, whether directly or after processing, into the national territory for sale, distribution or marketing without phytosanitary and food safety permits issued by the competent authorities, where that conduct harms national food sovereignty or national agricultural production.

Proposed Article 337-B would apply the same penalty to a public servant or official who, through an act, omission or negligence, allows, facilitates, assists or participates in that offense, or benefits from it. It would also cover an individual or legal entity that stores, repackages, relabels, combines or processes food products brought into the country through the conduct described in Article 337-A together with domestically produced food products. An individual or legal entity that transports products brought into the country in that manner would face the same penalty. Article 3 identifies the addition of articles to Law 14 of 2007. Article 4 provides that the proposed law would take effect on the day following its promulgation.

The text is submitted to the National Assembly (Asamblea Nacional). Its provisions could be relevant to the authorities responsible for issuing phytosanitary and food safety permits, public servants involved in the entry of food products, and the agricultural production, food marketing, storage, processing and transport sectors.