Food Fights over Free Trade

by Davis, Christina L.

• ISBN13: 9780691115054
• ISBN10: 0691115052
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-10-01
• Publisher: Princeton Univ Pr

Summary

This detailed account of the politics of opening agricultural markets explains how the institutional context of international negotiations alters the balance of interests at the domestic level to favor trade liberalization despite opposition from powerful farm groups. Historically, agriculture stands out as a sector in which countries stubbornly defend domestic programs, and agricultural issues have been the most frequent source of trade disputes in the postwar trading system. While much protection remains, agricultural trade negotiations have resulted in substantial concessions as well as negotiation collapses.Food Fights over Free Tradeshows that the liberalization that has occurred has been due to the role of international institutions. Christina Davis examines the past thirty years of U.S. agricultural trade negotiations with Japan and Europe based on statistical analysis of an original dataset, case studies, and in-depth interviews with over one hundred negotiators and politicians. She shows how the use of issue linkage and international law in the negotiation structure transforms narrow interest group politics into a more broad-based decision process that considers the larger stakes of the negotiation. Even when U.S. threats and the spiraling budget costs of agricultural protection have failed to bring policy change, the agenda, rules, and procedures of trade negotiations have often provided the necessary leverage to open Japanese and European markets. This book represents a major contribution to understanding the negotiation process, agricultural politics, and the impact of international institutions on domestic politics.

Author Biography

Christina L. Davis is Assistant Professor of Politics and International Affairs at Princeton University.

Table of Contents

List of Figures
List of Tables
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations
Introduction	p. 1
Negotiation Structure and Trade Liberalization	p. 35
Framework for Analysis of Negotiations	p. 37
Patterns of Agricultural Liberalization	p. 70
U.S.-Japan Trade Negotiations	p. 113
Farm Politics in Japan	p. 115
Legal Framing and Quota Policies	p. 135
Linkages in Comprehensive Negotiations	p. 178
U.S-EU Trade Negotiations	p. 225
Farm Politics in the European Union	p. 227
Two Rounds of Negotiating CAP	p. 254
Battles over Beef	p. 314
Conclusion	p. 343
Comparative Perspectives	p. 345
App.: Descriptive Statistics	p. 367
Bibliography	p. 369
Index	p. 387
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