Global Trade and Food Safety : Winners and Losers in a Fragmented System

Wilson, John S. ; Otsuki, Tsunehiro

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: FOOD SAFETY;    FOOD SECURITY;    AGRICULTURAL EXPORTS;    TRADE POLICY;    STANDARDIZATION;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-2689
RP-ID  :  WPS2689

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Food safety standards, and the tradeoffbetween these standards, and agricultural export growth, areat the forefront of the trade policy debate. How food safetyis addressed in the world trade system, is critical fordeveloping countries that continue to rely on agriculturalexports. In a fragmented system of conflicting national foodsafety standards, and no globally accepted standards, exportprospects for the least developed countries, can be severelylimited. The authors examine the impact that adoptinginternational food safety standards, and harmonizingstandards would have on global food trade patterns. Theyestimate the effect of aflatoxin standards in fifteenimporting countries (including four developing countries) onexports from thirty one countries (twenty one of themdeveloping). Aflatoxin is a natural substance that cancontaminate certain nuts, and grains when storage, anddrying facilities are inadequate. The analysis shows thatadopting a worldwide standard for aflatoxin B1 (potentiallythe most toxic of aflatoxins) based on current internationalguidelines, would increase nut, and cereal trade among thecountries studied, by $ 6.1 billion, compared with 1998levels. This harmonization of standards would increase worldexports by $ 38.8 billion.