Food Aid: What Role for the WTO?

Excerpted from Sailing Close to the the Wind: Navigating the Hong Kong Ministerial. The U.S. history of using food aid as a surplus disposal mechanism and vehicle to promote future export sales has drawn the World Trade Organization into the international debate about food aid.

Policy Coherence and Agricultural Trade Liberalization: Lessons for the Doha Round

Excerpted from Sailing Close to the Wind: Navigating the Hong Kong WTO Ministerial. According to a World Trade Organization secretariat note in October 2004, the primary objective of cooperation and policy coherence among the WTO, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund for the Doha Round negotiations is to expand market access opportunities.

The Impact of GATS on Agriculture

Excerpt from Sailing Close to the Wind: Navigating the Hong Kong WTO Ministerial. Conventional wisdom on the World Trade Organization negotiations has it that there will be a trade-off between concessions made by industrialized countries in agriculture

The United States WTO Agriculture Proposal of October 10, 2005

Excerpt from Sailing Close to the Wind: Navigating the Hong Kong WTO Ministerial. The U.S. proposal for new agriculture trade rules at the World Trade Organization (WTO) would allow a deeply flawed system in agricultural trade to continue, according to a new analysis by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy.

Sustainable Crop Production Principles

IATP's"Sustainable Crop Production Principles" identify the base values that need to be met in order for crop production to be considered sustainable.

U.S. vs. EU Biotech Products Case: WTO Dispute Backgrounder

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is scheduled to rule on a highly anticipated case that will directly impact how countries around the world regulate genetically modified (GM) crops and food.

Cultivating a New Rural Economy: Assessing the Potential of Minnesota's Bioindustrial Sector

Rural Minnesota is well positioned for substantial gains from a growing bioindustrial economy based on the production of energy and products using plant matter, according to a new report by the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy.

U.S. Food Aid: Time to Get it Right

U.S. food aid programs are plagued by inefficiency and are not addressing the long-term causes of hunger and food insecurity in the developing world. This report lays out problems with U.S. food aid and points to needed reforms.

The July Framework: Failing the Development Agenda

This analysis focus on the Framework agreement reached by the WTO in July 2004. The analysis compares proposals made for agriculture with objectives set out by governments at the fourth WTO Ministerial in Doha, Qatar in 2001.

CAFTA's Impact on U.S. Ethanol Market

The U.S. ethanol industry has experienced rapid growth in recent years. Much of this growth in the Midwest has been financed and fueled by local investments, primarily from family farmers, who own collectively over half of the 84 ethanol plants. These plants provide risk mitigation and a preferred market for corn farmers, new jobs and income streams for rural communities.