As WTO talks continue on subsidy reform initiatives, concerns persist over poor notification records (IISD)

IISD published an article on the WTO’s need to reform agriculture subsidy rules and to clinch a deal that disciplines harmful fisheries subsidies. The latter agreement is now nearly within striking distance. It has been a recurring complaint in the WTO’s Committee on Agriculture, given that the organization’s Agreement on Agriculture sets out a series of disciplines on agricultural domestic support, under which cases like the US-Brazil cotton dispute and the US-China agricultural subsidy dispute have been adjudicated. According to recent analysis by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) and IFPRI, many WTO members are overdue on several years’ worth of farm subsidy notifications, and what these contain can vary significantly.