japans mrls applied to sesame in june 2011 paraguay expressed concerns that japans mrls for pesticides in sesame were more restrictive than those applied to other similar products and had a negative impact on trade g sps gen 1091 . the application of an across-the-board uniform limit was inconsistent with the principles of the sps agreement. japan observed that there were no codex mrls for sesame. japan applied a uniform limit of 0.01 ppm as this was unlikely to damage human health based on the concept of acceptable exposure that had been scientifically assessed by jefca. these uniform limits had been notified to the wto. the european union also imposed the same uniform limit. japan could establish mrls for compound commodity combinations which were not registered in its legislation in response to exporting country applications for import tolerances. japan invited paraguay to file an application for an import tolerance with the ministry of health labour and welfare and to provide the necessary data for assessment. paraguay should be aware however that the mrl set by the european union for the compound in sesame was 0.05 ppm. in march 2013 paraguay reiterated its concern regarding japans application of mrls for pesticide in sesame that had resulted in the rejection or quarantine of some sesame shipments from paraguay. paraguay had been making efforts to ensure the quality of its products and was implementing specific regulations and risk mitigation plans for producers to adapt to market requirements. however adapting to mrl requirements that were much lower than those of similar products and of other international markets would imply high costs. japan required a limit of 0.01ppm for sesame while for similar products like broccoli mani rice and wheat the limit was set at 0.05ppm or above. paraguay requested japan to make a specific regulation for sesame based on scientific evidence and equivalent to those of similar products. paraguay reiterated its willingness to work with the japanese government to solve this issue. ecuador indonesia and mexico supported paraguays concern and recalled that mrls must be based on science and international standards. japan explained that it needed data and information from paraguay to change the mrl for pesticides in sesame. japan had requested this data from paraguay immediately after paraguay raised this issue in the committee meetings held in june 2011 but until now it had not received this data. japan reiterated its willingness to address this issue with the paraguayan government. ecuador and argentina reminded japan that the burden of scientific proof to justify an sps measure must be borne by the country applying the measure and not the other way around. india highlighted the fact that if there are no international standards and if members do not have a justification based on data they have no right to set arbitrary mrls that are especially harmful for developing countries. paraguay agreed that the burden of proof must be borne by the country applying the measure and noted that accommodating japans specific request for evidence was not easy given the large number of sesame producers in the country. nevertheless paraguay reiterated its willingness to work with japan to solve this issue. japan repeated its need for co-operation and input from other members to be able to base its mrl on scientific data. in october 2013 paraguay reiterated its concerns over japans application of mrls to sesame and maintained that uniform limits were inconsistent with the sps agreement since they were not based on scientific principles and were maintained without sufficient scientific evidence. carbaryl and imidacloprid were not included in the mrl table for sesame prepared by the japan food chemical research foundation. paraguay understood that under japanese regulations the uniform tolerance limit for pesticides not listed in such table was of 0.01 mg kg however japan allowed higher tolera