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EUROPEAN COMMISSION ADOPTS CHEMICALS PROPOSAL
EUROPEAN COMMISSION ADOPTS CHEMICALS PROPOSAL The European Commission on 29 October adopted its proposal for the new European chemicals policy REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restrictions of Chemicals). The proposal will now need to be approved by the European Parliament and Council. Industry groups criticised the proposal for being burdensome and threatening innovation, while environmental…
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GMO UPDATE: EU SEED LAW; NZ MORATORIUM; UK
GMO UPDATE: EU SEED LAW; NZ MORATORIUM; UK EU delays adoption of seed law The European Commission has delayed a decision on new rules for the purity of seeds, including thresholds for the presence of genetically modified organisms (GMOs), which the Standing Committee on Seeds was scheduled to vote on at its 27-28 October meeting. Under a…
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UN ASSEMBLY AND WTO DISCUSS PRIMARY COMMODITIES
UN ASSEMBLY AND WTO DISCUSS PRIMARY COMMODITIES On 27 October a group of economic experts presented their results from a study on commodities trends and issues to the UN General Assembly, stressing that increased market access for key commodities from developing countries is essential to development efforts. Commodities were also debated at the WTO Committee on…
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ENVIRONMENT PROVISIONS IN THE US-CENTRAL AMERICA FREE TRADE AGREEMENT?
ENVIRONMENT PROVISIONS IN THE US-CENTRAL AMERICA FREE TRADE AGREEMENT? After five days of trade talks, negotiators from the United States and five Central American nations (Guatemala, Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador and Nicaragua) finished their latest meeting on 24 October in Houston, expressing optimism about reaching an agreement on the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA)…
- In Brief
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SUPERMARKETS - A NEW THREAT TO SMALL AFRICAN FARMERS
In Brief BRIEF CTE MEETING ADDRESSES ILLEGAL LOGGING AND PARA. 51 WTO Members convened on 28 October for the first post-Cancun session of the Committee on Trade and Environment (CTE). The meeting lasted only two hours, as most delegates are awaiting the resumption of CTE special (negotiating) sessions, which are currently postponed until further notice along…
- Events
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Events
For a more comprehensive list of events in trade and sustainable development, please refer to ICTSD’s web calendar. Please bear in mind that dates and times of WTO meetings are often changed, and that the WTO does not always announce the important informal meetings of the different bodies. Coming up in the next two weeks 29-31 October,…
- Resources
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Resources
If you have a relevant resource (books, papers, bulletins, etc.) you would like to see announced in this section, please forward a copy or review by the BRIDGES staff to Marianne Jacobsen. TOWARDS A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF GLOBAL PRODUCTION NETWORKS, by Jeffrey Henderson and the Centre on Regulation and Competition, University of Manchester, ID21 Development Reporting…