“It was a pretty challenging discussion to get through,” he told the Rural News from Niigata in Japan shortly after the agreement was signed at the third assembly of the WFO.
Wills says Federated Farmers has been involved from the start in the three-year-old WFO, the only international farmer group that exists, to have as much influence as possible on trade issues.“The vast majority of farming countries in the world don’t support free trade. Sometimes we forget this in New Zealand because we live and breathe free trade.”
He said New Zealand and Australia were leading “by a country mile” the 50 members on the discussion of the free trade pact.
“We’ve spent months and months circulating among the member countries a trade policy paper which we felt aligned with our ideals of open and free trade to the benefit of farmers, and it’s been a battle.
“It was a pretty challenging discussion to get it through; it wasn’t fully supported… so we are happy that a new organisation like the WFO has shown the maturity after these three years to put together a collaborative paper that was comfortable to the vast majority of members.”
While they did not agree 100% on everything it was a huge step in the right direction, he said.
“The WFO’s guiding principles commit the WFO to the parallel elimination of all forms of export subsidies and disciplines on all export measures with equivalent effect. It all boils down to improved market access,” he says. “The WFO also wants a substantial reduction in trade-distorting domestic support but with special treatment for developing countries and the least developed.
“The feeling from the WFO is that strengthened rules should apply to export prohibition/restriction and export taxes too. Also important is proper protection of geographical indications as provided for under the WTO (World Trade Organisation) agreement on trade in intellectual property and recognition of country-of-origin requirements that allows countries to distinguish their products without distorting trade.
“The WFO strongly supports the WTO and believes that multilateral negotiations leading to a comprehensive trade agreement is the best way to pursue these objectives.”
