Trade Agreements Multifunctionality And Eu Agriculture

This volume is the result of research and exchange activities within the European Network of Agricultural and Rural Policy Research Institutes (ENARPRI). It synthesizes various analyses related to EU agricultural policies, trade agreements, and the issue of multifunctionality. The book focuses on the impact of regional, bilateral, and multilateral trade agreements that the EU has concluded or is in the process of negotiating, as well as on the interaction between EU policies and trade agreements, in the context of multifunctionality and sustainable development. Most of the trade agreements examined are extremely complex and impact not only efficiency and growth, but also income and welfare distribution within the EU. Special attention is given to the effects of possible WTO negotiation outcomes on the EU and third countries, as well as on the impact of the EuroMed trade proposals and agreements on trade flows and economic development of the EU's trading partners in the Mediterranean.

This book explores the extent to which EU Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) pursue sustainable agriculture in third country parties. It contends that this should be part of a duty for the EU enshrined in the Treaties to promote its fundamental values in its external action. It suggests that the extent to which this occurs in practice, may be reviewed judicially by the Court of Justice of the European Union. Against this background, selected agreements concluded by the EU with developed and developing countries (Canada, South Korea, Ukraine, Chile, SADC countries and Vietnam) are taken as case studies. The author concludes that, in spite of the remarkable progress made hitherto, EU trade policy is still far from being in line with the increasingly strong commitment of the EU to take the lead in the international arena for environmental and climate matters. This work adopts primarily a legal methodology, but it broaches the subject in interdisciplinary terms. It is addressed not only to (EU) policy-makers, but also to scholars of different fields and to the wider public interested in topics that have become of common concern for the future of our planet. With a foreword by Daniel Calleja Crespo, Director General of the European Commission - DG Environment

With the conclusion of the Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture in 1994, agriculture has for the first time been integrated into world trade rules and disciplines. WTO Members have made a commitment to continue the reform process initiated during the Uruguay Round by starting new WTO negotiations on agriculture by 2000. This book combines academic analysis with practical expertise to discuss, in an accessible and systematic way, some of the principal aspects of these agricultural negotiations, and aims to make recommendations for viable and successful negotiating positions in the new WTO talks on agricultural trade. Several expert articles outline the historical and political background of previous negotiations and policy developments in agricultural trade. Others provide an overview of the key issues for the new round of negotiations, including: the Common Agricultural Policy reform in view of the Millennium Round objectives and future enlargement of the European Union; the prospects for negotiations in the areas of market access and export subsidies; and aspects of primary importance for the future of international agricultural trade such as food safety and quality standards, environmental and animal welfare considerations, and issues under dispute in the WTO. The positions of leading actors in the new round of negotiations, including major countries (Japan and the United States), groups of countries (the European Union, the Cairns Group and net food-importing countries) and European farmers are also presented.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Agriculture has had a fundamental impact on agricultural policy worldwide. The new WTO agreements will cover agriculture,sanitary and phytosanitary measures, technical barriers to trade and trade in intellectual property rights. This book addresses the interface between the law of international agricultural trade, the emerging legal and economic order for agricultural trade under the auspices of the WTO, and its impact on agricultural policy reform both in the European Union and the USA. With contributions from leading authorities in the appropriate areas.

Agriculture has a small, and declining, importance in employment and income generation within the EU, but a political importance well beyond its economic impact. The EU's common agricultural policy (CAP) has often been the source of conflict between the EU and its trade partners within first the GATT, and then the WTO. In the Doha Round agriculture was again a sticking point, resulting in setbacks and delays. The position of the EU is pivotal. Due to the comparatively limited competitiveness of the EU's agricultural sector, and the EU's institutionally constrained ability to undertake CAP reform, the CAP sets limits for agricultural trade liberalization blocking progress across the full compass of the WTO agenda. Therefore, the farm trade negotiation, with the CAP at its core, is the key to understanding the dynamics of trade rounds in the WTO. The book, written by a political scientist and an agricultural economist, applies theory on ideas to explain how the agricultural sector came to be included in the Single Undertaking that resulted in the Uruguay Round agreements, and how this led to a dynamic interplay between CAP reform and the possibility of further agricultural trade liberalization within the WTO, thereby providing useful insights into international trade relations.

The African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries are facing several major sets of closely interlinked forces that are likely to have significant impacts on the development of their agriculture (including fisheries) sectors and their food security situations. The possible conclusion and outcome of both the negotiations for Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) under the Cotonou Agreement (with the European Union [EU]) and the World Trade Organization negotiations pose serious concerns on the future of their agricultural trade and development. This study provides an introduction to some of the most critical aspects of the agriculture and fisheries negotiations including feasible approaches and options for the ACP to ensure that their agricultural and fisheries sectors reap maximum and sustained benefits with a view towards enhancing their food security situation.

This report investigates the potential effects of 12 free trade agreements (FTAs) under the current EU trade agenda. For this, it quantifies the cumulated sectoral impacts in terms of bilateral trade, production, demand, and price developments. Moreover, it provides insights on the evolution of supply, demand, and farm-gate prices for the most relevant EU agricultural commodity markets. In contrast to a forecast exercise, this analysis compares two variants of a trade liberalisation scenario (conservative and ambitious) to a business-as-usual (baseline) situation in 2030. The study confirms that the analysed free trade agreements have the potential to benefit the EU agri-food sector when considered simultaneously. It also highlights the vulnerability of the beef, sheep meat, poultry, sugar, and rice sectors.