Fair and Sustainable Trade in Food and Agriculture
IISD conducts research and facilitates dialogue to help bring about trade rules that promote equitable and sustainable international trade in food and agricultural products.
The rules that govern international trade in food and agricultural products influence what is grown, where, and how. This has implications for livelihoods and food security in developing countries and for the environmental sustainability of our food systems. However, negotiations on international trade rules too often take place in isolation from these broader public policy considerations.
We produce evidence and analysis to increase understanding of the links between agricultural trade rules and key sustainable development challenges facing low-income countries and vulnerable groups. We also provide a space for informed discussion among a wider set of actors—including those who have not traditionally been involved in talks on trade and markets.
Our work on this topic focuses on three main areas: influencing World Trade Organization (WTO) negotiations, promoting the reform and repurposing of harmful agricultural subsidies, and analyzing how voluntary sustainability standards can help make value chains more sustainable.
WTO Agriculture Negotiations
We aim to influence WTO negotiations to help bring about multilateral trade rules that promote equitable and sustainable international trade in food and agricultural products and support a more resilient and sustainable global food system. We do this by producing evidence and analysis, facilitating dialogue with WTO negotiators on how to design WTO rules that drive sustainable development, and supporting delegations from low-income countries to engage effectively in the negotiations.
Repurposing Agricultural Subsidies
Globally, governments provide over USD 850 billion a year in support to their agriculture sectors. Much of this support incentivizes unsustainable production and consumption patterns. It incentivizes farming practices that drive climate change, environmental damage, and biodiversity loss, threatening the sustainability of our food systems. It also promotes the consumption of unhealthy foods, driving worsening global nutrition and increasing obesity rates. We aim to help governments rethink how they support and subsidize agriculture, with a view to ensuring such support contributes to sustainable development objectives rather than undermining them.
Standards and Value Chains
Our State of Sustainability Initiatives program looks at the role that voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) and associated initiatives can play in supporting more sustainable forms of production, consumption, and trade. Our work seeks to improve the design and practices of standards, increase synergies between standards and policy, and enhance transparency and accountability in value chains.
Publications and Events
Fitting the Pieces of the Puzzle
Governments are adopting sustainability standards for global value chains (GVCs), but businesses in the Global South face challenges in meeting these evolving regulations.
Strengthening the Role of VSS in Trade Policy
An interactive seminar during the World Trade Organization’s Trade and Environment Week on how to identify credible VSSs to integrate in trade policy and what role the WTO can play.
Women Turning the Table on Food Loss and Waste in Kenya
A group of changemakers led a movement to tackle food loss and waste in Kenya. IISD experts have been working closely with local women leaders to make change happen.
Integrating Voluntary Sustainability Standards in Trade Agreements: Charting a path for sustainable trade
This webinar explored recent trends, challenges, and opportunities related to the integration of voluntary standards in trade policy, with a focus on free trade agreements (FTAs).
Project team
Steffany Bermúdez
Policy Advisor I
Facundo Calvo
Policy Analyst, Trade and Agriculture
Sara Elder
Senior Policy Advisor, Standards Workstream
Cristina Larrea
Director, Agriculture, Food and Sustainability Initiatives
Erika Luna
Policy Analyst
Claire McConnell
Policy Advisor
Florencia Sarmiento
Policy Advisor
Rupal Verma
Policy Analyst II
Sean Woolfrey
Lead, Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems
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