JAPAN - MEASURES AFFECTING AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS
Document: Original: English JAPAN - MEASURES AFFECTING AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS Request for the Establishment of a Panel by the United States The followingcommunication, dated3 October 1997, from the Permanent Mission of theUnited States to the Chairman of the Dispute Settlement Body, is circulated at the request of that delegation.
Date: 6 October 1997
Document codes: WT/DS76/2
Complainant: U.S.
Respondent: Japan
Third parties: Brazil, EU, Hungary
Dispute stage: Mutually Agreed Solution
Agreements cited: Art. 2, 4, 5, 7  Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS)Art. XI  GATT 1994Art. 4  AgricultureArt. 8  Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS)

JAPAN - MEASURES AFFECTING AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS
Request for the Establishment of a Panel by the United States
The followingcommunication, dated3 October 1997, from the Permanent Mission of theUnited
States to the Chairman of the Dispute Settlement Body, is circulated at the request of that delegation.
Japan currently maintains a prohibition on imports of agricultural products. Specifically, for
each agricultural product for which Japan requires quarantine treatment, Japan prohibits the importation
of each variety of that product until the quarantine treatment has been tested for that variety. Japan’ s
prohibition applies even though the treatment has proven effective with respect to other varieties of
the same product. The relevant citations to Japan’ s import prohibition include the Plant Protection
Law (Law No 151) enacted 4 May 1950, as amended, and the Plant Protection Law Enforcement
Regulation (Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ordinance No 73) of 30 June 1950, as
amended.
Japan’ s import prohibition has adversely affected exports of U.S. agricultural products. Japan’ s
measures appear to be inconsistent with the obligations of Japan under the Agreement on the Application
of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994, and the
Agreement on Agriculture. The provisions of these agreements with which these measures appear
to be inconsistent include, but are not limited to, the following:
(1) Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, Articles 2,
4, 5, 7 and 8;
(2) General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994, Article XI;
(3) Agreement on Agriculture, Article 4.
On 7 April 1997, the Government of the United States requested consultations with Japan
regarding these measures pursuant to Article 4 of the Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing
the Settlement of Disputes (“ DSU” ), Article 11 of the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and
Phytosanitary Measures, Article XXIII of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994, and
Article 19 of the Agreement on Agriculture.
Consultations were held on 5 June 1997, but have failed to settle the dispute. Accordingly,
the United States respectfully requests the establishment of a panel with standard terms of reference
as set out in Article 7 of the DSU.
The United States further asks that this request for the establishment of a panel be inscribed
on the agenda of the meeting of the Dispute Settlement Body scheduled to be held on 16 October 1997.