Clearly, developing countries have reason to worry if rich countries embrace domestic farm policies that bring down the price of their goods in export markets, and clearly they are keen to see barriers to their own exports removed. Pledges to reform were made in 1993, at the end of the most recent set of world trade talks, the Uruguay round, but much remains to be done. But it is not just a matter of tariffs. They have kept this promise, but have fallen down on others, and show little sign of making further concessions. The banana trade perfectly illustrates the need for more transparency and liberalisation.
Bananas are the world's most traded fruit.
The EU imposes strict quotas and high tariffs on bananas from efficient producers in Latin America, while allowing free access to those from a handful of small African, Caribbean and Pacific countries. According to Brent Borrell of the Centre for International Economics in Canberra, Australia, the policy has driven down demand in the EU and reduced prices in the rest of the world. That is an alarming prospect for countries concerned about the security of their food supplies, especially for the many countries in sub-Saharan Africa that import more food than they export. Besides, none of this will happen overnight. Under a mandate from the Uruguay round, agricultural talks have to start this year, but the latest WTO meeting in Seattle last December, the successor to the Uruguay round, failed to launch a comprehensive new round.