Guarding the safety of a nation's food supply and providing standards and information to guide consumers' food choices are the joint responsibilities of governments and the private sector. But differences in the way countries fulfill these obligations can lead to trade conflicts in sectors ranging from beef to Bt corn. Regulatory protection of domestic producers sparked most trade disputes in the past, but as food technologies advance and as products become more differentiated, consumers seek additional regulations from their governments, thus increasing the scope for conflict.

This book examines the current state of agricultural and food regulations as they affect trade. The authors discuss the efficacy and compatibility of countries' food regulations and analyze the tensions that have emerged from increased regulation based on production processes as well as final content. They assess the need for strengthening the rules of the WTO and other international institutions charged with oversight of national policies and recommend other ways that regulation can enhance the benefits of an open food system.

Tim Josling is emeritus professor at the Food Research Institute and senior fellow at the Stanford Institute for International Studies, Stanford University. He has held academic positions at Stanford, the University of Reading, and the London School of Economics and Political Science. He is the author of Agricultural Trade Policy: Completing the Reform (1998).

Donna Roberts is a senior economist at the Economic Research Service, US Department of Agriculture. She served as a delegate to the WTO's Committee on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures while on assignment at the US Trade Representative's Permanent Mission in Geneva from 1996 to 2002. In her current position, she continues her research on food regulation and trade.

David Orden is senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute and professor in the department of agricultural and applied economics, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. He was visiting fellow at the University of New South Wales (1990-91) and visiting professor at Stanford University (1998-99). He is coauthor of Policy Reform in American Agriculture: Analysis and Prognosis (University of Chicago Press, 1999).

The Table of Contents of this book is available for download in PDF format.

Table of Contents
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