And then there were
five: Following up on an earlier
post, there are now 5 candidates left in the running for WTO Director General. Last time we posted about this, there was
some discussion in the comments about the factors that might make certain
candidates more or less likely. One that
is often emphasized is geography – i.e., there might be a preference for regional
diversity among the leaders of key international organizations (OECD; UNCTAD;
etc.). If it’s true that regional
representation matters, we at least now know that the next head of the WTO will be from Latin
America or Asia-Pacific (more here and here).
One of those five: A lot has been written about the relationship
between the financial crisis, food prices and political unrest (e.g. Arab
Spring). One of the still-remaining
candidates for the WTO’s DG position, Indonesia's Mari Pangestu, envisions a key role for the Doha Round
in preventing food shortages in the future. She warns that the status quo, wherein developed
state “farm subsidies have
artificially depressed world food prices, triggering a decline in production
and a fall in global food stocks,” contributes to
the potential for future food shortages.
And, the problem is exacerbated
by many countries’ export restrictions. Of
course, it’s hard to be optimistic re: agriculture when talking about the
WTO . . . even if there is recognition of the important second order effects of
agri-protection. See here.
Raisin regs: There is a case before the U.S. Supreme Court
concerning the constitutionality of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act, a
rationing-type program from the 1930s (here).
Under the program, raisins are expropriated from growers and then are
given away or sold. This is interesting
for a couple of reasons. First, it’s a trade
case that made it to the Supreme Court.
Second, the ruling might have implications for other producers that are
also subject to similar federal regulations.
Third, it's a nice reminder of how -- notwithstanding 75 years of changing economic circumstances for the industry in question -- policies can be very sticky (if that’s
in any way a pun, it was unintentional).
Serbia’s ban on GMOs: As part of its progress toward WTO
membership, Serbia has discussed dropping its import ban on genetically
modified food (here). In accord with WTO
case law, countries cannot impose absolute bans on GMOs. Serbia can still satisfy consumer preferences
through less trade-restrictive means, such as through labeling and other requirements. Plus, such modifications would be consistent with
existing EU regulations anyhow (and that's another int'l organization Serbia wouldn't mind satisfying). Here.
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