bilaterals.org logo
bilaterals.org logo

agriculture | farmers | food

PTI govt set to launch 13 mega agri-projects
18-Sep-2019 The Express Tribune
The government is set to launch 13 mega projects across the country in an effort to give a fresh boost to the agriculture sector with assistance from China.
NDDB wants dairy sector out of RCEP negotiations
17-Sep-2019 The Hindu Business Line
The National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) has recommended the government to keep the dairy sector out of the purview of negotiations under the Regional Comprehensive Economic
China to exempt US pork and soybeans from additional trade war duties, in response to Trump’s tariff delay
16-Sep-2019 South China Morning Post
China has announced that it will exclude imports of US soybeans, pork and other farm goods from additional trade war tariffs, opening the door for significant purchases of agricultural products.
Japan to eliminate tariffs on US wine in trade deal: Nikkei
16-Sep-2019 Reuters
Japan will eliminate the tariffs on US wine within five to seven years after the trade agreement goes into effect.
US agrees to expand low-tariff quota for Japanese beef imports: sources
16-Sep-2019 Japan Times
The United States has agreed to increase its low-tariff quota for Japanese beef in bilateral trade negotiations, sources close to the matter have said.
Science on safety of chlorinated chicken ’misunderstood’
13-Sep-2019 The Guardian
Government’s assurances that there are no health problems are misleading, say food policy experts.
In 2003, a farmer killed himself to protest globalization. Little has changed
13-Sep-2019 Vice
For years, farmers have said free trade policies have harmed them. Will the world finally start listening?
EU deal is dead if bad for ag
12-Sep-2019 Queensland Country Life
Agriculture will gain ground from a free trade agreement with the European Union or the deal is off, says Trade Minister Simon Birmingham.
In countdown to trade war talks, China ready to sweeten deal by buying American goods, source says
11-Sep-2019 South China Morning Post
China has offered to buy American products in exchange for a delay in a series of US tariffs and easing of a supply ban against telecoms giant Huawei.
US farmers’ group says pharma, not dairy, is main obstacle to ratifying USMCA
11-Sep-2019 CityNews
The National Farmers Union says the new deal’s extended patent protection for new pharmaceuticals must be reduced so that less expensive generic versions of new drugs can be available to consumers sooner.
US hints at rice concession in Japan trade talks
11-Sep-2019 The Mainichi
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue suggested the US may make concessions in seeking greater access to Japan’s rice market, during ongoing bilateral trade talks.
Modernized free trade agreement lifts duties on Israeli imports of Canadian foodstuffs
4-Sep-2019 Fresh Plaza
The expanded Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement took effect, eliminating or reducing tariffs on the import into Israel of a wide range of foods from Canada.
USMCA pits rural people in each country against one another: Via Campesina North America
3-Sep-2019 La Via Campesina
We see the revision of NAFTA – rebranded as the USMCA (or T-MEC) – as another failure to respect the dignity of farmworkers, family farmers, Indigenous people, and the communities and territories in which we live.
La Via Campesina issues call to mobilise against WTO and Free Trade Agreements
3-Sep-2019 Via Campesina
La Via Campesina is calling upon its members and allies to not be misled by the smokescreen of a ‘weakening WTO’ and be aware of the new age mega and bilateral free trade agreements are equally if not more harmful.
Quebec dairy farmers struggling with new open markets
3-Sep-2019 CTV
Quebec dairy farmers continue to struggle as international trade agreements have hit their bottom line hard.
Seed patent protection in FTA castrated the farmers’ rights
28-Aug-2019 Indonesia for Global Justice
The government of Indonesian is aggressively increasing the negotiation of international trade agreements governing seed patents for corporations.
Swiss release more details over EFTA - Mercosur deal
26-Aug-2019 Swiss Info
Concessions in the agricultural sector went too far. In the area of beef the Swiss had made more concessions than their EU counterparts, says Swiss Farmers’ Union.
Post-Brexit US trade deal: Chlorinated chicken could be the tip of the iceberg, warns UK union
21-Aug-2019 Food Ingredients First
Chlorinated chicken, as part of a post-Brexit free trade deal with the US, is “the thin end of the wedge” that could impact public health and threaten thousands of jobs in the UK food processing industry.
El Salvador’s sugar producers want to keep Taiwan free trade pact
21-Aug-2019 Dialogo Chino
In August 2018, El Salvador followed the Dominican Republic and Panama in switching diplomatic allegiance from Taiwan to China. But in March 2019, president-elect, cast doubt over whether his government would maintain that status.
US and Japan near free trade deal as high-level talks get underway in DC
20-Aug-2019 Foreign Brief
US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will meet with his Japanese counterpart Toshimitsu Motegu in Washington for two days of discussions on a proposed bilateral free trade deal.