International

Down on the Farm with the WTO

Published in the Spring 2000 issue of the magazine Whole Earth and also in the Spring 2000 edition of the Whole Earth Catalog under the title "WTO Think-In". Agribusiness had long argued that the industrial model of agriculture was inevitable and there was no alternative to globalization and homogenization.

Battle Royale of the 21st Century

Beyond Seattle

Published in Seattle & Beyond by the Alliance for Sustainable Jobs and the Environment, Vol. 2, No. 1. The recent World Trade Organization Ministerial talks in Seattle failed largely because the negotiation process was undemocratic.  It was the first time where the developing nations stood fast against the trade agenda of the economic superpowers.

WTO, Agricultural Deregulation and Food Security

Published in Foreign Policy In Focus, Volume 4, Number 34, December 1999. Can deregulated world markets ensure food security for the world? No negotiator of the Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) could honestly say that this was the first intent of the agreement. Yet, the AoA preamble lists food security as one of the legitimate "non-trade" objectives of agriculture policy.

Testimony on the World Trade Organization Negotiations

Niel Ritchie, National Organizer for the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, testified before the U.S. Agriculture Policy Forum, held on June 7, 1999 in Saint Paul, MN., on domestic agriculture policy and the so-called Freedom to Farm legislation.

The Continuing Threat from Trade Negotiations

This article was published in the Dollars and Sense, March/April, Number 222. Providing a brief history of GATT/WTO, the authors then go on to explain the relationship between agriculture and intellectual property rights (Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights or TRIPS) and why the stalled Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI) could be resurrected.

IATP's Comments to the U.S. Trade Representative Regarding the Upcoming WTO Ministerial

In preparation for the upcoming Third Ministerial Conference of the WTO, IATP addressed concerns in a comment sent to US Trade Representative Charlene Barshefsky. The comments cover the WTO Agreement on Agriculture, Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards (SPS) and intellectual property rights (TRIPS).

Food Security, Farmers and a Fair Place for the South

Proceedings of the Washington, DC Meeting on the WTO Agreement on Agriculture, September 30-October 4th, 1998. Sponsored by IATP, Solagral and the Foundation Charles Leopold Mayer pour le Progres de l'Homme. The purpose of this document is to provide continuing collective educational material and further the movement-building process.

World Trade Organization and Food Security-What is at Stake

In preparation for the next trade talks, this paper takes a close look at some of the most important key elements at stake for farmers, peasant organizations and civil society. The most prominent areas of direct impact for food security are the upcoming talks on plant patenting and on general agriculture rules.