Western Farmers Fear Third-World Challenge to Subsidies

‘French fries’ might have been replaced by ‘freedom fries’, and American tourists may have disappeared from the Eiffel Tower, but France and the US can still find some common ground at the upcoming WTO talks in Cancun. Farmers from both nations count on farm subsidies to supplement their incomes and drive down their costs. $300 billion are given by the world’s richest states to their farmers. In the US, the vast majority of that money goes to “agribusiness” – large corporate farms – but small farmers as well worry about their futures if subsidies were to be cut. Some farmers also object to globally imposed limitations on government activity, arguing that if French (or American) taxpayers wish to support farmers, they should have that right. Others argue that the WTO should not be able to overturn laws that guarantee funding. African interests respond that their farmers are starving and can not compete in the unfair agricultural trade system as it stands. – YaleGlobal