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- From: harelb@math.cornell.edu (misc.activism.progressive co-moderator)
- Subject: TRADE NEWS 8/24
- Message-ID: <1992Aug27.184825.11494@mont.cs.missouri.edu>
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- Date: Thu, 27 Aug 1992 18:48:25 GMT
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- --> FOOD SAFETY ADVOCATES CRITICAL OF NAFTA
- --> US DAIRY GROUP DEMANDS DETAILS OF NAFTA
- --> VILLAGE VOICE RIPS NEWSPAPERS FOR SUPPORTING NAFTA
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- Topic 149 TRADE.NEWS 8-24-92
- kmander Updates on GATT & NAFTA Negotiations 2:41 pm Aug 24, 1992
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-
- TRADE NEWS BULLETIN
- Monday, August 24, 1992
- _________________________________________________________
- NAFTA News Summary
- _________________________________________________________
- FOOD SAFETY ADVOCATES CRITICAL OF NAFTA
-
- NAFTA will weaken U.S. food safety legislation and allow food
- imports that do not meet U.S. standards, the U.S. Community
- Nutrition Institute (CNI) said in a statement. Although the
- NAFTA text has not been released, CNI used a U.S. Department
- of Agriculture summary of the treaty to demonstrate how it will
- weaken health standards. According to the USDA, NAFTA will
- uphold health standards of each country if the standards: are
- based on scientific evidence; are applied only to the extent
- necessary to protect health and the environment and; are not
- "disguised restrictions on trade."
-
- CNI argues "the right of citizens to adopt standards for food
- additives, pesticides, chemicals and contaminants based on
- health and environmental considerations will be conditional on
- these three criteria." Further, CNI argues, the precise meaning
- of phrases such as "scientific evidence" and "extent necessary"
- are open for interpretation and "will be used to attack
- standards that are designed to protect health and the
- environment.
-
- Source: Rod Leonard, COMMUNITY NUTRITION INSTITUTE
- STATEMENT, August 20, 1992.
- _________________________________________________________
- US DAIRY GROUP DEMANDS DETAILS OF NAFTA
-
- The U.S. Farmers Union Milk Marketing Cooperative (FUMMC)
- has called on the Bush Administration to release details of the
- NAFTA accord reached August 12.
-
- President Stewart G. Huber said FUMMC is primarily concerned
- about: loss of dairy quotas through tariffication; lowering of
- sanitary standards; inadequate rules of origin which could allow
- Mexico to buy dairy exports from outside nations and import
- them into the U.S. and; exempting the Canadian dairy market.
-
- Under NAFTA, Canadian marketing boards for eggs, dairy and
- poultry products are exempt from tariff reductions.
-
- Source: "FUMMC Demands Full Dairy Details of NAFTA," MILK
- MATTERS, August 17, 1992, p. 1.
- _________________________________________________________
- VILLAGE VOICE RIPS NEWSPAPERS FOR SUPPORTING NAFTA
-
- This week's edition of the VILLAGE VOICE sharply criticizes the
- media's handling of NAFTA's completion. Media critic James
- Ledbetter denounces U.S. newspapers for praising NAFTA
- without actually having seen the text of the agreement. The
- VOICE says that "every single conclusion about the treaty's
- magical effects were spoon-fed by the White House."
-
- The NEW YORK TIMES received most of the VOICE's ire because
- it stressed NAFTA's purported strengths while failing to take
- seriously the arguments of NAFTA opponents. The VOICE
- objects to the TIMES' assertions that U.S. job losses would be
- more than made up by new jobs in the export industry. The
- VOICE argues the TIMES should have reported on a study
- revealing that New York State could lose 500,000 jobs in the
- next five to 10 years as a consequence of NAFTA.
-
- Source: James Ledbetter, "Rough Trade," VILLAGE VOICE,
- August 25, 1992, p. 9.
- _________________________________________________________
- Resources:
-
- 1. The Environmental Grantmakers Association and the
- Consultative Group on Biological Diversity have published A
- GUIDE TO TRADE AND THE ENVIRONMENT by Thomas A.
- Wathen. The book examines the fundamental principles of free
- trade, specific trade agreements, conflicts between trade and
- the environment, as well as a whole range of other issues from
- sustainable forestry to global warming. The 97-page book also
- provides news of what actions citizen and environmental groups
- are taking on trade, the role for foundations and a directory of
- non-governmental organizations working on trade and
- environmental issues. For a copy, send US$7.50 ($5.00 each for
- orders of three or more) to Pam Maurath, EGA, 1290 Avenue of
- the Americas, Suite 3450, New York, NY 10104. Phone: (212)
- 373-4260.
- _________________________________________________________
- Produced by:
- Kai Mander
- The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP)
- 1313 Fifth Street SE, Suite #303
- Minneapolis, MN 55414-1546 USA
-
- TMl0phone:(612)379-5980 Fax:(612)379-5982
- E-Mail:kmander@igc.org
- _________________________________________________________
-
-