It comes as no surprise that consumer groups here are reacting cautiously to the government's draft plan requiring some food products containing genetically modified ingredients to be clearly labeled to indicate that fact. Controversy was only to be expected from the decision by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to exempt certain foodstuffs from the proposed requirement, specifically those in which it is impossible to detect GM ingredients or in which the the ingredients are removed or dissolve during processing.

More surprising to many observers is that ministry officials appear set to take such a decisive, if still limited, step so quickly. Japan, in other words, is following in the footsteps of the European Union, which legally requires manufacturers to label genetically altered foodstuffs, rather than of the United States, which together with Canada is a major producer of GM crops and strongly opposes labeling requirements. As critics note, soybeans are a leading example of a GM crop produced in the U.S., and 97 percent of the soybeans used in this country are imported.

At the summit of the Group of Seven industrialized nations in Cologne last month, France proposed the establishment of an international group similar to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to oversee worldwide food standards, but the U.S. roundly rejected the idea. European governments, of course, have good reason to be sensitive to public opinion on food safety following the recent reports of cancer-causing dioxin contamination in chicken, eggs and livestock in Belgium, the temporary removal of Coca-Cola Co. products from store shelves in several countries and the earlier ban on British beef sales due to fears of "mad cow" disease.