Measuring the effect of food safety standards on African exports to Europe

Trade in agricultural products has become more and more internationalized and globalized. A global trading system is now both more free and fair than ever before, which will boost global prosperity and contribute significantly to global economic development. Favourable conditions for international trade in agricultural products include trade liberalization, trade unions and free trade areas. Most of the regulations on global market agricultural products are implemented by the World Trade Organization (WTO), which unites the majority of countries, including the main agricultural producers, exporters and importers. The WTO oversees issues such as trade regulation, sanitary control rules, custom duties and tariff quotas on imported agricultural production. It also oversees the structure, direction and dynamics of future trade in agricultural products. This chapter analyses the state of Russian foreign trade in agricultural products from 2002 to 2012 and investigates WTO threats to and opportunities for Russian agriculture and trade in the global market. This chapter examines state support of agricultural production in Russia and its influence on volume, direction, structure and effectiveness of international agricultural trade.

Introduction. The resource potential of Ukraine in the formation of supply of high quality agricultural products gives grounds to assert its importance in the world market. The purpose of the paper is explores the question the current state and prospects for the development of the legal framework for the organization of exchange trade in agricultural products in Ukraine. Laws, regulations, concepts related to exchange activities are considered. Results. The author defines the concepts, types and features of the organization and functioning of commodity exchanges in Ukraine; found out the benefits of stock trading; the agrarian exchange isdistinguished and characterized. The article analyzes the actsof economic legislation in the sphere of regulation of the stock exchange trade in agricultural products in Ukraine, identifies its main shortcomings and gaps. The development and place of the agrarian exchange among domestic commodity exchanges are analyzed, the main reasons of inefficient functioning of the agrarian exchange are revealed and concrete measures for overcoming inefficient functioning of the agrarian market are offered. The main task of agricultural exchanges is to provide services in concluding exchange agreements on agricultural products, identifying commodity prices, demand and supply of agricultural products. It is substantiated that with the help of the exchange trade mechanism conditions are created for the formation of the fairest market price for agricultural products, which determines the prospects of the exchange trade mechanism in Ukraine and the world. Conclusion. The analysis of the current state of legal regulation and the system of organization of exchange trading in agricultural products in Ukraine leads to a conclusion that in Ukraine at the present stage of development there is no proper system for the organization of stock exchange trading in agricultural products, which is caused by the shortcomings of the economic legislation in the field of legal regulation of stock exchange trade in agricultural products in Ukraine systematic legal mechanism and insufficient efficiency of stock exchange infrastructure. The article presents the necessity of elaboration of the state concept of development of exchange trading in agricultural products in Ukraine, expansion of exchange infrastructure, introduction of electronic system of exchange trading, further development of Ukraine and integration to the world financial system.

The problems and prospects of development of international trade in agricultural products of China at the present stage in the conditions of global instability are revealed. Today, countries have to face sudden crises. Military conflicts, sanctions wars caused by anthropogenic factors, or natural disasters or epidemics caused by natural factors are possible. The article reflects the current conditions for the development of China's international food trade, formed as a result of the aggravation of the geopolitical situation in the world, the incompleteness of the processes associated with the COVID 19 epidemic, the existence of threats to break the country's established integration ties with Western partners. The dynamics of the international trade turnover of agricultural products of China for 2021-2022 has been revealed. The geographical structure and size of both exports and imports of agricultural products from China by continent are analyzed. A SWOT analysis of China's foreign economic relations was carried out, external threats and opportunities for the development of international trade in Chinese agricultural products were identified, as well as an assessment of global threats, the main of which is macroeconomic instability. Shortcomings in the development of international trade in Chinese agricultural products are highlighted, including a relatively low level of self-sufficiency in some important agricultural products of the Chinese population (soybeans, sugar and dairy products); the high cost of agricultural production in China and the relatively low quality of agricultural products, the narrowness of the range of export products. The ways of further development of international trade in agricultural products of China are revealed. The solution to this problem is possible on the basis of digitalization of international food trade, improvement of China's transport and logistics infrastructure, which provides more opportunities for expanding agricultural trade and cooperation between China and countries along the Silk Road. At the present stage, in the context of the escalation of tough economic sanctions by Western countries against the Russian economy, the development of the Sino-Russian bilateral food trade is of particular relevance.

List of Maps. Preface. 1. Introduction. 2. How much Water is used for Producing our Goods and Services?. 3. Virtual-Water Flows between Nations as a Result of Trade in Agricultural and Industrial Products. 4. Water Saving through International Trade in Agricultural Products. 5. The Water Footprints of Nations. 6. The Water Footprints of Morocco and the Netherlands. 7. Virtual- versus Real-Water Transfers within China. 8. The Water Footprint of Coffee and Tea Consumption. 9. The Water Footprint of Cotton Consumption. 10. Water as a Geopolitical Resource. 11. Efficient, Sustainable, and Equitable Water Use in a Globalized world. Appendix I. Analytical Framework for the Assessment of Virtual-Water content, Virtual-Water Flows, Water Savings, Water Footprints, and Water Dependencies. Appendix II. Virtual-Water Flows per Country Related to International Trade in Crop, Livestock, and Industrial Products. Appendix III. National Water Savings and Losses due to Trade in Agricultural Products. Appendix IV. Water Footprints of Nations. Appendix V. Water Footprint versus Water Scarcity, Self-Sufficiency, and Water Import Dependency per Country. Glossary. References. Index

This dissertation investigates the implications of the EU non-tariff measures, focusing on both SPS measures on food safety and technical regulation aspects of TBT that govern the agricultural food sector, and their consequence for African exports. This is undertaken in four distinct but interrelated essays. In the first essay, we investigate if the European Union (EU) sanitary and phytosanitary standards and technical regulations governing fish products are overprotective in nature following the reoccurring rejection of Africa’s fish exports by the EU at its borders since 2008. To produce unbiased and consistent estimates for policy making, we undertake a careful consideration of the robustness of a number of widely used estimators. We find that the EU food measures are indeed non-protectionist in spite of the huge level of Africa’s fish exports rejected at the EU border since 2008. This result shows that the high incidence of border rejection cannot be wholly attributed to stringent EU fish standards but rather to Africa’s inability to comply with the EU standards. We therefore agitate that deeper trade negotiations between the EU and African countries involving a significant transfer of science and technology to Africa could help improve Africa’s compliance to EU fish standards and ensure increased export penetration. The second essay of the thesis has focused on how the EU sanitary and phytosanitary standards on pesticides residual limits affect selected Africa’s fresh fruit and vegetable exports using a previously unexploited dataset on EU regulation of citrus and tomato pesticide standards. In addition, we also analyse the trade effect EU entry price system which aims to protect EU growers of certain fruits and vegetables against international competition. We represent these trade costs in the context of a Melitz firm heterogeneity framework using the Helpman, Melitz and Rubenstein (2008) method. At the extensive margin of trade, the high stringency of EU pesticide standards prevents new entry into the EU market, drives less productive firms away, and discourages existing exporters from expanding their market base. However, at the intensive margin, the trade effect is product specific as standard can either be a catalyst or barrier to export success, depending on the product considered. Furthermore, our results also reveal that the EU entry price system has no apparent effects on all products considered but significantly impedes the export of tomatoes to the EU. To ensure increased market access, we recommend the negotiation of deeper trade agreements with comprehensive provisions on standards by the trading partners. In the third essay, we investigate the protectionist extent of EU sanitary and phytosanitary measures covering pesticide standards using a sample of EU food imported from African countries with a specific focus on tomatoes and citrus fruits. We formalize what protectionism is by comparing EU food safety standards to the internationally scientific referenced benchmarks regulated by both the Food and Agricultural Organisation and the World Health Organisation. Our results show that the EU tomato food sub-sector is less dependent on imports and is overprotected by more stringent standards relative to the international benchmarks. Conversely, we find that the EU orange and lime and lemon food sub-sectors are heavily import dependent and are under-protected relative to the international standards. These results largely support the hypothesis that heavily import dependent food sub-sectors are less protected, and vice versa. The implication of our findings highlights the fact that importing countries’ standards are not always protectionist or protectionist as widely portrayed in the literature and can at times be anti-protectionist relative to internationally acceptable standards. The fourth essay was inspired from antecedent evidence that selected food exports of many African countries were rejected at the EU border due to their inability to conform with the required EU standards. Thus, in the fourth essay, we investigate the causes of the rejections of African exports at the EU borders and collated detailed data on the driving the inabilities of Africa countries to comply with EU food safety standards. Our results indicate that natural geographical hurdle, poor trade-related infrastructure, inefficient border procedures and a lack of technical personnel increase the incidences of rejection at the EU border and add to Africa’s challenges in accessing EU markets. In addition, in line with the growing literature, this study finds empirical support for the proposition that institutions, infrastructure and logistic quality matters for increased market penetration and continuous integration into the global trading system. The study recommends that the barrier created by the EU rejection of Africa’s exports can be overcome through the strengthening of Africa’s institutions and trade facilitation measures.

Since the reform and opening up, especially since its accession to the WTO, China has become an important agricultural trade country in the world. As China's agriculture and the entire national economy share the benefits of global economic integration, they must also meet the impact of fierce market competition, price fluctuations and industrial restructuring caused by this. This study puts the export trade of agricultural products into the national economic growth system and explores the impact and contribution of agricultural export trade to China's economic growth. Based on the theory of international trade in agricultural products and economic growth, the paper analyzes the analysis framework of the impact of international trade in agricultural products on China's regional economic growth. First, based on the realistic understanding of the development of China's agricultural export trade, comprehensive and systematic analysis of the characteristics of China's agricultural export trade development to determine the future trend of it. Secondly, the correlation analysis of SPSS software is used to verify the impact of agricultural export trade on economic growth. Third, based on the test and analysis of the research results, systematically evaluate the contribution of agricultural export trade to China's economic growth. Studies have shown that the increase in agricultural export trade has made great contributions to China's economic development and has become increasingly prominent in economic development. This paper uses the economic data from 2010 to 2017. According to China's 31 administrative divisions and the three economic divisions of the eastern, central and western regions, the technical methods such as absolute value increment analysis and correlation analysis are used to explain the promotion of regional agricultural products to economic development. To this end, China needs to increase investment in agricultural science and technology, promote the development of agricultural industrialization, improve the circulation of agricultural products, reduce the transaction costs of agricultural products, improve the efficiency of international trade in agricultural products, and continuously improve the comprehensive production capacity and international competitiveness of Chinese agricultural products. Keywords: China, regional agricultural products, exports, economic growth, correlation analysis, impact.

Taking the pertinent data from the 22 countries along the economic corridor of western and central Asia and China from 2012 to 2019 as the samples, the performance of international logistics of countries of western and central Asia was described and the impact of the performance of international logistics of countries along the economic corridor of western and central Asia on export of China's agricultural products was carried out by using a gravity model. The results revealed that the GDP, population, mutual neighbourhood, S member countries and improvement of the performance of international logistics of western and Central Asia have significant promoting effect on the growth of export of China's agricultural products. Different sub-indexes of international logistics performance in western and central Asia exerted different influences on the export trade of China's agricultural products. Therefore, in order to better promote the development of export trade of China's agricultural products, China should make joint efforts with countries of western and central Asia to make use of the opportunities brought by the ‘Belt and Road Initiative' (‘B&R’) to improve the connectivity of logistics infrastructure and deepen the cooperation of China and countries along the economic corridor of western and central Asia in trade of agricultural products.

The article is devoted to studying the structural and dynamic changes in international trade in agricultural products in Ukraine. The authors reveal the theoretical essence of international trade in agricultural products, considering export and import conditions in light of modern challenges. The assessment of the foreign trade regime is provided and the trends and impact of implementing the Agreement on Association between Ukraine and the EU on the development of Ukraine's foreign trade are established. It was found that, on one hand, the export orientation of raw materials to the EU crop production market has increased, while on the other hand, there remains a high import dependence on prepared food products, with a more diversified import structure. The peculiarities of key directions of Ukraine's agro-industrial market under martial law and its place in the global food security system are described. The article also examines the structure of Ukraine's trading partners, which have been revised since the beginning of the war. The peculiarities of cooperation between Ukraine and the EU in international trade in agricultural products are analysed. Ways of diversifying exports and increasing the profitability of foreign trade in agricultural products from Ukraine in the EU market are suggested.

The research paper aims at carrying out a systematic analysis of the complementarity of foreign trade in agricultural products and to substantiate on this basis the priorities for the expansion and balancing of Ukrainian agricultural exports at the micro, macro, and mezzo-levels. The concept of complementarity of foreign trade is defined as the level at which the economic systems of different countries are balanced on the basis of mutual complementarity of the commodity structure of export and import and effective participation in the international division of labour. The methodological approaches to the study of complementarity of foreign trade are systematized. The article uses a complex approach to the analysis of foreign trade relations in the agrarian sphere and the extent to which it is balanced. The main trends and features of the development of Ukrainian foreign trade in agricultural products are determined. It was found that the imbalance of the foreign economic sphere in the agricultural sector is manifested in the dominance of export activities of large agricultural holdings, the monocultural nature of agricultural production and export, and ineffective institutional support of small farmers and agrarians. An empirical assessment of the complementarity of Ukrainian foreign trade in agricultural products has been carried out using complementarity indices, indices of revealed comparative advantage, and applying the method of cluster analysis. The conducted calculations proved that the Ukrainian agricultural sector has a significant unused potential for the development of exports on the basis of complementarity. A set of priorities of balancing foreign trade in agricultural products based on complementarity are substantiated, in particular, the following: forming a system for monitoring the complementarity of Ukrainian foreign trade in agricultural products; concluding and comprehensively supporting the implementation of interstate agreements on the development of mutually beneficial trade in complementary products, including on a barter basis; providing support for export development of small and medium-sized enterprises, and for small-scale production; enhancing diversification of the assortment of agricultural exports of Ukraine, especially in the niches of craft and organic products; supporting complementary foreign trade relations at the level of individual regions of Ukraine; providing a strong and efficient consulting support for exporters, giving assistance in the process of finding foreign partners and entering foreign markets.

The paper is focused on specialization of Russia’s foreign trade in agrarian products and foodstuffs in terms of inter-industry and intra-industry trade. The main objective of this study is to analyse the extent of intra-industry trade in Russia’s foreign trade in agricultural products and to identify significant changes in trade patterns at the industry level over the transformation period (1996–2012).The results coming from individual conducted analyses provide a systematic decomposition of Russia’s foreign trade into three trade types: inter-industry, intra-industry in horizontally and vertically differentiated products. Inter-industry type of trade dominates in Russian foreign trade in agricultural and food products and accounts for about a third of total trade flows. The analysis revealed significant differences in the intensity of intra-industry trade, depending on geographic region. The lowest level of intra-industry trade is observed in relation to Africa and South America, the highest - in relation to CIS countries. There were also found some trends, including the expanding intra-industry trade in relation to the CIS countries, as well as a decrease in relation to Asian and EU countries.

World trade in agricultural and agro-industrial products was $547 billion, or 9.1 per cent, of total merchandise trade in 2001. It increased marginally to $583 billion in 2002, or 9.3 per cent of total merchandise trade. Although trade in agricultural products has been increasing in absolute terms, its share of total world trade declined steadily during the twentieth century. Until now this trend has shown no sign of abating, which is logical and easy to comprehend. As a share of merchandise trade, trade in agriculture declined from 17 per cent to 10 per cent over the 1980–97 period.

The economic development of countries is largely determined by their foreign trade. Poland’s trade with Ukraine is facilitated by many years of experience, proximity and the influence of international economic integration. Both countries are large producers and exporters of agri-food products, and there is a prospect of deepening relations in the context of developing integration processes. The importance of this study stems from Ukraine’s aspirations for European integration, Poland’s membership in the EU and the development of trade relations with Ukraine over the years. At the same time, the main issues remain: access to EU markets, harmonisation of product quality standards, trade liberalisation in the context of deepening integration, non-discrimination of countries and so forth. The purpose of the study is to determine the prospects for the development of trade in agricultural products between Poland and Ukraine in the context of international economic integration, identify the most promising areas of integration, assess the importance of agricultural products in foreign trade and analyse the trends in their foreign trade. The study utilises the scientific works of researchers, statistical data from international trade statistics for 2003-2022 and general scientific and specific research methods, including methods of analysis and synthesis, statistical analysis, abstract-logical and system analysis, generalisation and others. Exports from Poland and Ukraine are increasing, with Poland’s exports rising more significantly. The share of agri-food products, especially those from Ukraine, is growing. Ukrainian exports of agri-food products to Poland have increased more than total exports. The influence of international economic integration on foreign trade is evident; following the agreement between Ukraine and the EU, Poland’s trade with Ukraine has increased. A similar trend is observable in the trade between these countries and the EU. Foreign trade between the countries is growing; the trade balance between Poland and Ukraine for all products is positive, but for agri-food products it has become negative. The EU is the main importer for Poland. The commodity structure of Poland is more diversified than that of Ukraine. The types of products for which it is desirable to establish common production and mutual trade have been identified in order to provide the population with quality products at an affordable price and expand their position in the world market. Product groups with the greatest prospects for integration, particularly in trade, between Poland and Ukraine have been identified. According to calculations based on dynamic series, it is assumed that the trend in the development of trade in agricultural products between the countries will continue in the future, which could contribute to effective integration between them. Thus, international economic integration aids the development of foreign trade between Poland and Ukraine, as well as between Ukraine and the EU. Ukraine needs to promote export diversification as it significantly lags behind Poland – which should contribute to an increase in exports. It is necessary to stimulate the overall production and export of selected types of agricultural and food products, which should help enhance product competitiveness, improve quality, increase the income of producers and enable both countries to expand their positions in the EU and global markets. This is particularly important in the context of developing international economic integration, the availability of natural resources in Poland and Ukraine, the increase in global demand for food and the deepening climate crisis. The issue is even more pressing since Ukraine is in a difficult situation under martial law, yet it remains an important trading partner in the global market.

Trade of agricultural products in the last decades has become more and more globalized. The global trading system is now both freer and fairer than ever before, boosting global prosperity, making significant contribution to global economic development. Main goal of the paper is to analyze the current state of Russia-EU trade of agricultural products. The period of analysis includes 2001-2011. The analysis involved main exporting and importing countries for each analyzed product group. Sub-goals include an overview of the WTO threats and opportunities for Russian agriculture, and trade with agricultural products globally, as well as comparison of main consequences of WTO accession for such CIS countries as Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan, Georgia and Moldova. This is also, related to state support of agricultural production in Russia and CIS and its influence on volumes, directions, structure and effectiveness of international trade with agricultural products.

On the background of intensive development of world trade in agricultural products and foodstuffs,Belarusis increasingly entering the system of international division of labor, occupying a fairly significant place in the world ranking of the leading countries. In turn, it stimulates the domestic agricultural industry to develop in the dynamic rhythm of the world market and constantly adapt to evolution of the international trading system. Participation of the republic in regional integration communities, such as the Eurasian Economic Union and theUnionStateofBelarusandRussia, is one of the areas for achieving sustainable development of AIC. In this regard, the issues of studying the conditions and factors of efficient integration of AIC into the global food trade system acquire particular relevance. The paper highlights the major conditions for functioning of the global food system over the shorter and longer term. It has been substantiated that sustainability of integration ofBelarusinto the global food market was determined by the following factors: stability of international competitiveness of Belarusian foodstuff, export specialization in products of animal origin, significant part of trade with theRussian Federation, favorable conditions for development of agricultural business, etc. Advantages of large-scale production and the role of large integrated agricultural holdings in formation of Belarusian transnational corporations of agrarian profile have been reflected, the main forms of efficient interaction in AIC have been considered.

Foods have become open to physical, chemical, and biological degradation due to their structural properties. The concept of food safety includes measures that can be taken against these types of may occur hazards and risks. Risk analysis is a planned approach created to identify risks to food safety and to reduce likely occur risks in terms of human health. The processes take a long time of storage, transportation, and distribution of products in international agriculture and food trade make them more vulnerable to physical, chemical, and biological risks. Food control systems applied in foreign trade of agricultural and food products are carried out based on risk analysis. In this study, the place and importance of risk analysis in foreign trade of agricultural and food products have been mentioned, and it has been tried to reveal the worldwide legislation regulations, practices, and development related to risk analysis.