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Newsletter #7: Drought and management of public stocks, reform of the WTO, US sugar policy

Hello,

This month, we offer:

Will the Payment for Environmental Services concept cause further damage to the environmental side of the CAP?

Payments for Environmental Services (PES) are at the heart of the debate on the next CAP. As a study for the French Ministry of Agriculture shows, the benefits claimed by some of the PES promoters, namely the logic of results obligation and their greater attractiveness for farmers, are far from guaranteed. On the contrary, the use that is made of this concept tends to go against the Agro-environmental and Climatic Measures (MAEC), which are nevertheless a type of PES. The announcement of a 25% decrease in the 2nd pillar budget in the next CAP confirms this risk at this stage.

Drought 2018 in Europe: must we stop selling milk powder from public stocks?

The drought in northern Europe this summer is likely to affect 50 to 60% of Europe’s milk potential. In this context, the Commission should revise its strategy of disposing of public stocks resulting from the 2015 crisis. The current management of European public stocks is too pro-cyclical – it accentuates the cycles – and not enough contra-cyclic because the obsession of the Commission is for the time being mainly to get rid of its stocks rather than control the market.

What if Trump helped save the CAP?

Among the shake-up of all the certainties that President Trump is engaged in, the principle of decoupling aid at the base of the WTO rules and the path of reform of the CAP since 1992 could well pass. Indeed, by establishing anti-dumping duties on Spanish table olives, the Americans question the supposed neutrality of decoupled aid. A chance for the European Union? Yes, but provided you develop an emergency plan B!

US-China trade war: soybeans and pork at the heart of Trump’s 12 billion announced support

The trade war started by Trump has already had an impact on US export sectors, particularly soy and pork. To overcome this, President Trump immediately announced $ 12 billion in emergency aid, including direct aid and purchases for food aid programs. A responsiveness to American farmers that has something to envy on this side of the Atlantic.

Reforming the WTO to overcome the crisis of multilateralism

At a time when escalation continues in this new trade war unleashed by President Trump, the proposals are welcome to rethink multilateralism and the role of the WTO. As such, Mehdi Abbas, lecturer at the University of Grenoble Alpes, gives us an overview of the main projects to open and calls for a new architecture of international trade and investment. For the economist, this is both a reform of governance of the WTO but also “to open the debate on modalities and, above all, the aims of the current international trade negotiations”.

The sugar policy in the United States: a continuous management of the internal market

The first article in a series on sugar policies around the world, we present a presentation of the mechanisms and issues of the sugar market of the 6th world producer: the United States. Thanks to minimum prices as well as quotas for production and imports, the supply balance is continuously controlled, which allows the price of US raw sugar to be on average since 2000, 66% higher than international exchanges.

Also available :

Hunger in the world: a decade of wasted effort according to the latest FAO report

Agriculture: an attic of sustainable jobs for young people and returning migrants

Good reading !

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