EcoFair Trade Dialogue: New directions for agricultural trade rules
In no other trading sector currently negotiated within the WTO do different interests appear so irreconcilable as in agriculture – with conflicting parties literally everywhere.

The EcoFair Trade Dialogue, initiated by the Heinrich-Boell-Foundation in co-operation with Misereor and facilitated by the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy, aims to push the debate about WTO and the agricultural trade system further. Although there seems to be a widespread NO to the neo-liberal trade-agenda, there is still no common understandings of what the future agenda should be. More

Latest from the Eco Fair Trade Dialogue in Newsletter No. 3 (pdf, 53 KB)

"EcoFair" is a registered trademark of Naturland - Federation for Organic Agriculture

EcoFair Trade Dialogue: The Expert Panel Group
The Expert Panel Group meets frequently until the end of 2006. 12 experts from all continents will formulate research questions, develop reform proposals and write policy papers. More

EcoFair Trade Dialogue: Setting a common agenda

The EcoFair Trade Dialogue wants to achieve a coherent reform proposal which responds to the 21st century's social and ecological challenges to global agriculture. The normative basis for this proposal are the economic, social and cultural human rights, ecological sustainability and gender equity. The project additionally aims to link normative, civic demands (guiding principles) with political decision-making (instruments) and thus to influence policy making processes on agricultural trade in the medium and long term.

The EcoFair Trade Dialogue will deal with measures fitting into the current structure of the WTO's Agreement on Agriculture, such as tariffs and subsidies, but also look beyond the current trade-regime. Potential approaches for trade regulation include supply management, qualified market access and commodity agreements.

In this context, items to be discussed by an international Expert Panel Group include

The challenges of agriculture in the 21. century
The normative principles of a future trade system
The concept of Food Sovereignty
The governance of Imports
Supply Management
Qualified market access

The EcoFair Trade Dialogue Fora

The project consists of three phases, in which three different dialogue fora will play a prominent role. The Expert Panel Group will meet frequently until the end of 2006. 12 experts from all continents will formulate research questions, develop reform proposals and write policy papers. In addition, an "international advisory board" to the Expert Panel Group will be set up to ensure constant input from decision makers and stakeholders of different backgrounds.

A series of regional consultations worldwide will provide various stakeholders with the chance to discuss and extend the policy papers and reform proposals developed by the Expert Panel from their respective regional and local perspectives. The third dialogue forum is meant to address policy-makers specifically.

The Organizers

The EcoFair Trade Dialogue is a project of the Heinrich-Boell-Foundation in co-operation with Misereor and facilitated by the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy . The project is jointly financed by the organizers with help from the German Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI) and the German Federal Ministry of Economic Co-operation (BMZ).