RTRS ORGANIZING COMMITTEE MEETING IN ROLLE, (SWITZERLAND)
FORMAL FOUNDATION OF RTRS AS A LEGAL INSTITUTION

After the Second Roundtable Conference on Responsible Soy held in Asunción, Paraguay between August 31 and September 2, and in accordance with the terms of the Asunción Declaration agreed to by the participants, the RTRS Organizing Committee (OC) held a meeting in Rolle, Switzerland, on November 8, with a view to strengthening and consolidating the gains achieved in Asunción.  

In this manner, RTRS consolidates the Initiative started in 2004 with the constitution of a legal entity domiciled in Switzerland. RTRS has become a non-profit Civil Association, based upon membership according to different stakeholder constituencies (Producers, Business, Industry & Finance) and with an international projection as a global organization with presence in the key soy producing and consuming regions of the world.

The gathering was presided by Brigit Hofer (Coop), and was attended by practically all OC Members, together with other organizations and donor agencies as Observers. In addition to approving the RTRS Statutes, the OC discussed and approved the wording of the Final Draft of the Responsible Soy Principles, upon the basis of the discussions and input received from the Asunción Conference Working Groups, together with suggestions received from a broad range of stakeholders.

This Final Draft will be given a definitive version by the Principles, Criteria and Verification Development Group, soon to be established in accordance with the work plan for the RTRS Initiative over the upcoming months.