An advisory panel to the minister of economy, trade and industry will meet early next month to discuss establishing a system to control biotechnology, the ministry said.
The Industrial Structure Council will hold a subcommittee meeting for the first time on Oct. 3. By the end of March, the panel will propose means of controlling aspects of biotechnology to prevent it from adversely affecting human health and the environment, it said.
The system will be in line with the Cartagena Protocol, an international document on biological safety adopted last year in Montreal to ensure the safety of living modified organisms before they are traded across borders.
The new system will supplement the ministry's safety guidelines on genetic engineering for industrial use, the ministry said.
Academics in natural, human and social sciences, in addition to industry and consumer representatives, will take part in the subcommittee meetings, it said.