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  • From: robert schuler <sunnfarm AT bellatlantic.net>
  • To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] NY Times Opinion Today
  • Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2004 18:13:29 -0400

American farm subsidies account for a little over 5% of world agricultural
subsidies, most nations who do not pay subsidies do something worse they
charge huge tariffs which are the same as subsidies except instead of passing
along the money to the farm families the people in power line their own
pockets. When the local farmers complain they are told its the fault of
American farm subsidies.
The truth is that American farm subsidies have no effect on world prices. The
problem is worldwide over production of a few crops and the low prices that
follow ...Bob.

Matt Cheselka wrote:

> April 28, 2004
> Those Illegal Farm Subsidies
>
> America's lavish handouts to its farmers harvest poverty throughout the
> developing world. And they are illegal as well. That's the conclusion of a
> World Trade Organization panel that heard Brazil's challenge to the cotton
> subsidies that belie this nation's commitment to free and fair trade.
>
> Cotton is far from the only crop that American farmers are able to dump on
> the international market at low prices thanks to federal subsidies. But it
> is one of the most outrageous cases. Brazil was wise in choosing it as the
> first target in the developing world's challenge of the roughly $1 billion
> a day in subsidies that rich nations dole out to their farmers. If the
> preliminary ruling stands, as expected, it may mean the beginning of the
> end for European and American practices that provide their farmers an
> unfair advantage.
>
> In addition to Brazil, an agricultural superpower, some of the world's
> poorest nations, including the West African republics of Mali, Benin and
> Burkina Faso, are vindicated by the W.T.O.'s decision. Cotton is West
> Africa's cash crop, the one economic activity in which the region has a
> competitive advantage. By underwriting much of the costs of America's
> 25,000 cotton farmers with checks that can total $3 billion a year,
> Washington erases that advantage. Aided by American experts who are
> critics of this warped system, Brazil convincingly argued that in the
> absence of subsidies, the United States would have produced and exported
> substantially less cotton than it did in recent years. Consequently,
> growers elsewhere would have enjoyed greater market share and higher
> prices.
>
> The glaring contradiction between American farm subsidies and the
> principles underlying the global trade system has long posed a moral and
> political problem for Washington. Now it is also a legal problem. Instead
> of digging in its heels and spending years appealing the panel's ruling,
> the Bush administration needs to seize upon it as a reason to negotiate
> the surrender of rich nations' trade-distorting farm subsidies.
>
> The administration has a mixed record on this issue. It offered proposals
> to start weaning corporate farmers off their subsidies two years ago --
> admittedly after approving a farm bill that exacerbated the problem. Then
> it backed away in the face of strong opposition from Congress and the
> European Union. That retreat not only hurt the poor nations' farmers, but
> also American taxpayers, consumers and most business interests, including
> more competitive farmers.
>
> The W.T.O.'s talks on the further liberalization of trade faltered over
> the subsidy issue at CancĂșn last year, but this week's ruling will vastly
> strengthen the position of Brazil and others advocating the dismantling of
> agricultural subsidies that distort trade. The sooner they prevail, the
> better.
>
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