Pesticides Residues and Trade: the Apple of Discord?

The impact of food safety standards on international trade has already been addressed. Generally, economists try to assess trade losses borne by exporters when importing countries impose stricter regulations. In this paper we assess the impact of the Maximum Residue Levels (MRL) of pesticides on the trade of apples and pears. Rather than focusing on a particular pesticide we take into account the entire list of substances set out by the various regulations with the aim is to understand how the similarity (or dissimilarity) of these can affect trade. Most studies assess the impact of sanitary standard regulations introducing directly in the analysis the MLR put in force in the importing country. We assume that what can be crucial is the difference in the tolerance levels of both the importing and exporting country. Having built a similarity index we then introduce it into a gravity equation to assess the impact of differences in MRL of pesticides on the trade of apples and pears of seven exporting and seven importing countries. Results suggest that harmonizing regulations impacts trade differently depending on the exporter.food safety, standards, pesticides, MRL, apple, pear, market access, Crop Production/Industries, International Relations/Trade, Q17, F13,

Do trade preferential agreements enhance the exports of developing countries? Evidence from the EU GSP

The EU grants preferential access to its imports from developing countries under several trade agreements. The widest arrangement, in terms of country and product coverage, is the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) through which, since 1971, virtually all developing countries have received preferential treatment when exporting to world markets. This paper evaluates the impact of GSP in enhancing developing countries’ exports to EU markets. It is based on the estimation of a gravity model for a sample of 769 products exported from 169 countries to EU over the period 2001-2004. While, from an econometric point of view, the estimation methods take into account unobservable country heterogeneity as well as the potential selection bias which zero-trade values pose, the empirical setting considers an explicit measure of trade preferences, the margin of preferences. The analysis offers new empirical evidence that the impact of GSP on developing countries’ agricultural exports to the EU is positive.Trade Preferences, Developing Countries, Agricultural Trade

The “Sophistication” of Agri-food International Trade: Switching the Concept to Imports

The aim of the paper is twofold. First, it introduces a new index (called Consy) for measuring the sophistication of traded goods looking at the importers’ side. The index is defined and then its sophistication content is assessed based on a simple regression model. Second, an empirical exercise is carried out focused on agri-food imports for a set of 46 selected items. This empirical analysis brings evidences on the kind of outcome provided by the index, but it also sheds light on recent trends in agri-food trade where demand of food imports in emerging countries is enlarging and it is more quality-oriented. Results can help stakeholders in better defining and implementing their exporting strategies, especially orienting business towards promising markets and enhancing the quality features for their exports to be delivered to more demanding consumers. Policymakers and sector analysts may also be interested in acknowledging how agri-food international trade is re-shaping in recent years in order to be able to govern the related processes.The Consy values of agrifood products indicate that rich countries are major world importers. Furthermore, the Consy ranking shows that higher value-added and more complex items are imported mainly by richer countries. The time trend of the Consy index is also studied and results show that, in the studied period, the was an increase of import shares of food items for final consumption of higher quality from poorer countries

Determinants of trade: the role of innovation in presence of quality standards

This paper analyses the role that quality standards and innovation play on trade volume, by using a gravity model. The role of innovative activity and quality standards in enhancing trade performance is widely accepted in the literature. However, in this paper, we argue that the net effect of quality standards on trade depends on the producers’ ability to innovate and comply with these requirements. In particular, by using a sample of 60 exporting countries and 57 importing countries, for a wide range of 26 manufacturing industries over the period 1995-2000, we show that the most innovative sectors are more likely to enhance the overall quality of exports, and then gain a competitive advantage. We also find that this effect depends on the level of technology intensity at sector-level and on the level of economic development of exporting country

Impact de la révision du système généralisé des préférences européen sur les importations agroalimentaires en provenance des pays en développement

La plupart des pays taxent leurs importations. Au niveau mondial, ces taxes (ou droits de douane ou encore tarifs) sont réglementées par des accords de commerce régis par l’Organisation mondiale du commerce (OMC). Ces tarifs sont fixés selon la clause de la nation la plus favorisée (NPF) qui stipule que tout avantage commercial accordé par un pays à un autre doit être automatiquement étendu à tous. Toutefois, il existe de nombreuses exceptions à cette clause. Beaucoup de pays ou de régions du monde signent des accords commerciaux préférentiels où ils s’engagent de manière unilatérale ou bilatérale à réduire leurs tarifs par rapport au niveau NPF. C’est le cas de l’Union européenne (UE) qui offre de manière unilatérale des préférences commerciales aux pays en développement dans le cadre du système généralisé des préférences (SGP) pour notamment promouvoir le commerce de ces pays. Depuis leur mise en place, il y a débat sur l’efficacité de ces préférences du fait d’obstacles administratifs ou de règles d’attribution restrictives qui en limitent la portée. L’UE déclare cependant que le nouveau SGP, entré en vigueur le 1er janvier 2006, est à la fois plus simple et plus généreux que les précédents. Dans cette étude qui examine si ces revendications sont justifiées et si elles se vérifient dans les faits, on se concentre sur les échanges agroalimentaires dans la mesure où la plupart des changements intervenus concernent des droits de douane grevant ce type de produits. Si les révisions opérées par l’Union Européenne dans son régime de préférence ont permis d’améliorer l’accès de ses marchés agroalimentaires à certains pays en développement, leur impact reste cependant limité.

Do trade preferential agreements enhance the exports of developing countries? Evidence from the EU GSP

The EU grants preferential access to its imports from developing countries under several trade agreements. The widest arrangement, in terms of country and product coverage, is the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) through which, since 1971, virtually all developing countries have received preferential treatment when exporting to world markets. This paper evaluates the impact of GSP in enhancing developing countries’ exports to EU markets. It is based on the estimation of a gravity model for a sample of 769 products exported from 169 countries to EU over the period 2001-2004. While, from an econometric point of view, the estimation methods take into account unobservable country heterogeneity as well as the potential selection bias which zero-trade values pose, the empirical setting considers an explicit measure of trade preferences, the margin of preferences. The analysis offers new empirical evidence that the impact of GSP on developing countries’ agricultural exports to the EU is positive

Do trade preferential agreements enhance the exports of developing countries? Evidence from the EU GSP

The EU grants preferential access to its imports from developing countries under several trade agreements. The widest arrangement, in terms of country and product coverage, is the Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) through which, since 1971, virtually all developing countries have received preferential treatment when exporting to world markets. This paper evaluates the impact of GSP in enhancing developing countries’ exports to EU markets. It is based on the estimation of a gravity model for a sample of 769 products exported from 169 countries to EU over the period 2001-2004. While, from an econometric point of view, the estimation methods take into account unobservable country heterogeneity as well as the potential selection bias which zero-trade values pose, the empirical setting considers an explicit measure of trade preferences, the margin of preferences. The analysis offers new empirical evidence that the impact of GSP on developing countries’ agricultural exports to the EU is positive

Measuring the complexity of complying with phytosanitary standard: the case of French and Chilean fresh apples

Nowadays, complying with technical, sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) regulations and standards is becoming more and more demanding due to their proliferation and increasing complexity. Consequently, increasing requirements in plant health protection and food safety can lead to a loss of competitiveness in countries that are major exporters of fresh products, causing a redistribution of the market shares in certain sectors. Exporters complying with regulatory standards benefit from better market access and avoid boarder rejection or product downgrading but incur additional costs due to additional procedures and paperwork. This is the case for French apples producers which are losing competitiveness compared to the Chilean ones on foreign markets. This situation can be partially explained by the difficulties of French exporters to comply with international SPS requirements. The aim of this article is first to make a compilation of phytosanitary requirements facing French and Chilean exporters of fresh apples, then to propose a score (hereafter phytosanitary score) which allows to assess the degree of complexity of these SPS requirements. This score is interesting as it synthesizes qualitative information in a metric which can be easily used in quantitative analysis. The results show that even if France and Chile are rather close in terms of SPS requirements, Chilean apples exporters are more capable to comply with foreign SPS requisites than the French ones

3-hydroxy-L-kynurenamine is an immunomodulatory biogenic amine

Tryptophan catabolism is a major metabolic pathway utilized by several professional and non-professional antigen presenting cells to maintain immunological tolerance. Here we report that 3-hydroxy-l-kynurenamine (3-HKA) is a biogenic amine produced via an alternative pathway of tryptophan metabolism. In vitro, 3-HKA has an anti-inflammatory profile by inhibiting the IFN-gamma mediated STAT1/NF-kappa Beta pathway in both mouse and human dendritic cells (DCs) with a consequent decrease in the release of pro-inflammatory chemokines and cytokines, most notably TNF, IL-6, and IL12p70. 3-HKA has protective effects in an experimental mouse model of psoriasis by decreasing skin thickness, erythema, scaling and fissuring, reducing TNF, IL-1 beta, IFN-gamma, and IL-17 production, and inhibiting generation of effector CD8(+) T cells. Similarly, in a mouse model of nephrotoxic nephritis, besides reducing inflammatory cytokines, 3-HKA improves proteinuria and serum urea nitrogen, overall ameliorating immune-mediated glomerulonephritis and renal dysfunction. Overall, we propose that this biogenic amine is a crucial component of tryptophan-mediated immune tolerance. 3-hydroxy-L-kynurenamine (3-HKA) is a metabolite deriving from a lateral pathway of tryptophan catabolism. Here the authors identify 3-HKA as a biogenic amine and show it has anti-inflammatory properties that can protect mice against psoriasis and nephrotoxic nephritis.Peer reviewe

Severe early onset preeclampsia: short and long term clinical, psychosocial and biochemical aspects

Preeclampsia is a pregnancy specific disorder commonly defined as de novo hypertension and proteinuria after 20 weeks gestational age. It occurs in approximately 3-5% of pregnancies and it is still a major cause of both foetal and maternal morbidity and mortality worldwide1. As extensive research has not yet elucidated the aetiology of preeclampsia, there are no rational preventive or therapeutic interventions available. The only rational treatment is delivery, which benefits the mother but is not in the interest of the foetus, if remote from term. Early onset preeclampsia (<32 weeks’ gestational age) occurs in less than 1% of pregnancies. It is, however often associated with maternal morbidity as the risk of progression to severe maternal disease is inversely related with gestational age at onset2. Resulting prematurity is therefore the main cause of neonatal mortality and morbidity in patients with severe preeclampsia3. Although the discussion is ongoing, perinatal survival is suggested to be increased in patients with preterm preeclampsia by expectant, non-interventional management. This temporising treatment option to lengthen pregnancy includes the use of antihypertensive medication to control hypertension, magnesium sulphate to prevent eclampsia and corticosteroids to enhance foetal lung maturity4. With optimal maternal haemodynamic status and reassuring foetal condition this results on average in an extension of 2 weeks. Prolongation of these pregnancies is a great challenge for clinicians to balance between potential maternal risks on one the eve hand and possible foetal benefits on the other. Clinical controversies regarding prolongation of preterm preeclamptic pregnancies still exist – also taking into account that preeclampsia is the leading cause of maternal mortality in the Netherlands5 - a debate which is even more pronounced in very preterm pregnancies with questionable foetal viability6-9. Do maternal risks of prolongation of these very early pregnancies outweigh the chances of neonatal survival? Counselling of women with very early onset preeclampsia not only comprises of knowledge of the outcome of those particular pregnancies, but also knowledge of outcomes of future pregnancies of these women is of major clinical importance. This thesis opens with a review of the literature on identifiable risk factors of preeclampsia