Trade Policy and Trade Agreements| Markets and Trade | Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

Trade agreements influence patterns of trade, as well as the production and consumption of food. Ongoing World Trade Organization (WTO) agricultural negotiations and a rapid increase in bilateral, regional and mega-regional trade agreements have seen trade rules becoming more complex. In this context, FAO assists its Members to implement trade agreements and to prepare for trade negotiations, through studies, analyses, capacity development and experience sharing. This support ensures countries’ effective participation in the multilateral trading system and promotes that the benefits of trade are shared by all.

Key messages

Multilateral trade rules, which take into account the specific needs of developing countries, are needed to ensure that the expansion of agricultural trade is conducive to the eradication of hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition.

Trade policies must consider the different needs and roles of large-scale agricultural producers and smallholders and family farms.

FAO emphasizes the need to strengthen coordinated and participatory policy-making processes and promotes more inclusive, transparent, and predictable rules for trade policy making and implementation.

Publications

Agricultural trade in the Global South – An overview of trends in performance, vulnerabilities, and policy frameworks

01/03/2022

South-South Cooperation (SSC) is increasingly recognized as an effective instrument for catalyzing economic development by fostering the exchange of innovation and good practices, and expanding market opportunities across countries with a similar level of development and shared development objectives, such as those reflected in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Key to this economic cooperation are trade and investment relationships among South countries.

Review of agricultural trade policies in post-Soviet countries 2017–2018

25/06/2020

The publication presents analysis of agricultural trade policies in post-Soviet countries. The aim of the review is to monitor the latest changes in trade policies of these countries, affecting the dynamics and structure of trade. The publication includes a chapter with an overview of the prospects for expanding the agricultural trade of some Central Asian countries with China and the Russian Federation, and a chapter about the impact of climate change on agricultural trade in Eastern Europe and Central Asia.

No. 31 WTO Negotiations - Eleventh WTO Ministerial Conference (MC11) – Outcomes for agriculture and fisheries

15/08/2018

Between 10 and 13 December 2017, Trade Ministers gathered in Buenos Aires, Argentina, to participate in the Eleventh WTO Ministerial Conference (MC11). Following the conclusion of the meeting, this brief reports on its outcome, with particular reference to the negotiations on agriculture and fisheries.