Trade and Health

Whenever I am talking with someone about the purpose of the WTO (or trade agreements generally), I like to draw the distinction between discrminatory trade barriers and non-discriminatory trade barriers, with the point being that we may want to treat the two categories differently.  Putting aside the difficult question of

The WTO asbestos dispute seems long over (thank goodness, many people would say), but some issues related to exporting asbestos are still out there.  The Economist reports: FOR more than a decade, workers in hazmat suits have been boring into the walls and ceilings of Canada’s parliament buildings to

Every time I think about SPS Agreement Article 5.1, as we have been in relation to the Hormones II AB report, the following question occurs to me:  Why is there an international trade rule requiring SPS measures to be based on a risk assessment?  Put another way, what is

I often hear trade critics say that WTO rules prevent countries from taking action to ensure food safety, but do they really?  In response to the terrible Chinese tainted milk scare, some countries are taking action against imports.  For example: the European Union will require testing of all imported products

The issue of a ban on clove cigarettes is still lingering.  In an article on legislation that would give the FDA authority to regulate tobacco, the NY Times notes: The bill would ban candy, fruit and spice-flavored cigarettes, including clove cigarettes, but menthol cigarettes would be exempt from the ban.

In response to the recent safety scares related to toys imported from China, Barack Obama says: "I would stop the import of all toys from China."  Does he really mean that? First off, this sounds like campaign rhetoric more than a policy proposal. In addition to that, it