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Purnhagen, Kai ; Wesseler, Justus:
Precaution and the Precautionary Principle: A View on the EU – The Example of Modern Biotechnology.
In: Marciano, Alain ; Ramello, Giovanni Battista
(Hrsg.):
Encyclopedia of Law and Economics. -
New York
: Springer
,
2025
ISBN 978-1-4614-7883-6
Abstract
The precautionary principle is a legal principle that allows law makers to intervene in markets. The intervention can be done in different forms including providing additional information to banning specific activities. The precautionary principle plays an important role in EU law governing the use of " genetically modified organisms" (GMOs). The precautionary principle is a general principle of Union law and part of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. Market interventions involving the precautionary principle can take many forms such as requiring additional information or banning specific activities. The precautionary principle is placed prominently at the beginning of EU measures concerning the regulation of “genetically modified organisms” (GMOs). As to the different interpretations of the precautionary principle, more often than not the precautionary principle has been interpreted in a way which blurs the fine line between the precautionary principle and the principle that preventive action will be taken, jeopardizing the precautionary approach as an underlying rationale of the precautionary principle.
This contribution highlights the differences between a precautionary approach and the precautionary principle and the implications this has for the debates on GMOs. The economic rationale for a precautionary approach underpinning the precautionary principle will be presented and the misconception and misuses discussed.