How International Trade Agreements Factor into the Food Industry

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By Carolyn Heneghan , Food Dive Sep 01, 2015

TPP, TTIP, organic equivalencies — trade agreements have been all over the headlines for the past few months. But what is the impact for food and beverage companies in the U.S.?

Historically, international trade agreements were meant to open up markets and mainly involved removing two primary barriers to trade: high import tariffs and quotas. After the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and World Trade Organization (WTO) went into effect in 1994 and 1995, respectively, that began to change.

"NAFTA and WTO ushered in a new regime of trade agreements that dealt with not only the flow of goods across borders but also a host of regulatory issues that have an impact on trade, including intellectual property, food safety, and labeling and standard requirements," said Patrick Woodall, research director and trade policy expert at Food & Water Watch. "We entered into a realm where trade disputes could actually address domestic standards, regulatory regimes, and other measures, which another country could view as an illegitimate trade barrier."

Country-of-origin labeling (COOL) of meat is one example, as it has been challenged by Canada and Mexico as an illegitimate trade barrier. Earlier this year, the WTO ruled in their favor again after denying a fourth U.S. appeal to keep the labeling requirements in place. Canada has since threatened high tariffs.

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