The sky-high prices of Chicago Futures Market for grain from spring to summer of 1996 seemed that the new era of grain shortage has come and the era of surplus typically found in 1980s had already passed. So, the new scheme of WTO resulted from the GATT Uruguay Round Negotiation started from the late 1980s and finished in Dec. 1993 aiming so called 'Free Trade' based on the large U. S. and EU grain surplus, must face big issues of shortage, especially for the country heavily dependent on imported foodstuff like Japan. The change seen in the wild fluctuation of market prices may have resulted from destabilized supply due to the expected increase in abnormal weather, export regulations in response to shortage of grain like EU export tax introduced in 1995 autumn, growing demand for feed seen in the developing countries like China and other East-Asian countries and the expected population explosion taking place in the less developed countries, as lots of analysts say. Surely these factors explain partly the recent change of future market. However, the new situation that the large U. S. grain surplus and huge stock, which had eased the influence of large swings in annual harvests exerted upon the market, can no longer be counted because of U. S. farm policy change, should be pointed as the main factor. Due to my judgment, after the Soviet Union Block collapsed U. S. has not take the role of food security for her allied countries by stocks held in government and she can not afford financially to have huge stock, resulting in policy change to little stock. What I should emphasize is that the subsidy cut for the policy measure to more domestic production requested to all party country by WTO must make the supply-demand imbalance more trouble. For a country depending on importing farm products, the view of food security should be taken into consideration in farm policy, especially for Japan with the exceptionally low level of food self-sufficiency rate among the developed countries.

View full abstract

In this paper, I have analyzed the relationships between contemporary agriculture and agribusinesses in the United States. The paper's conclusions are as follows. The agricultural production in developed and developing countries are really included into the vertical integration system of agri-food, as transnational agribusinesses have integrated production, processing, distribution and consumption of food over the border internationally. By means of "diversification" and "transnationalization", agribusinesses are strengthening the control of food in the world, acquiring more of their own interests. Also they are putting pressure on governments and international organizations, such as the United Nations, in order to make and decide policies, so that their effect on agribusinesses will be advantageous. Considering Japanese and world farming from this point of view, it is easy for anyone to see that Japanese farmers are not suffering from farmers who export agricultural products into Japan, especially American farmers, but from a handful of transnational agribusinesses. Discussing on trade liberalization of farm products, we often tend to describe a scene in which farmers of the largest importing country, i. e. Japan, would conflict with farmers of the largest exporting country, i.e. U.S.A.. However, what actually conflict with Japanese farmers and consumers are transnational agribusinesses, particularly those backed up by the U. S. governments. Moreover, the real picture is that transnational agribusinesses are heavily controlling and exploiting U. S. family farmers and developing country's peasants along with Japanese farmers.

View full abstract

The purpose of this article is to make a clear attainment of 1992 CAP Reform and problems remained, describing the real condition of European Agriculture under the new established WTO. What is most important, when we investigate GATT agricultural negotiation in connection with international agricultural reform, is to clear up what is permitted or not afterwards, in compliance with agricultural agreement of Urguay round. The Urguay Round Agreement provided two exemptions from agricultural protection; pease clause called blue box and semi-permanently exemption of agricultural protection called green box. CAP will have to reoganize towards new European Agriculture which is competitive internationally until next round, making use of these exemptions. In other words, CAP has to reoganize de-coupling from blue box to green box, and then make it agree with rules of WTO. CAP will be, therefore, needed to place environmental problems in the central part of policy. British Government has been having an eye on efficient and internationally competitive agriculture, reducing agricultural protection and has been looking for a way to sustainable agriculture, using various economic instruments instead of environmental regulations.

View full abstract

It is not a short time since Japanese agriculture was said to be facing a crisis. This paper aims at studying how Japanese agricultural policy is being reformed under the agreement on agriculture of the GATT Uruguay Round and how Japanese agriculture will change under new surroundings, new domestic agricultural policy and WTO. I studies three subjects concretely. The first is changing the structure of Japanese agriculture after the late 1980s for explaining the actual state of agricultural crisis. The next one is the details of agricultural policy reform. The last is that new policy will be able to solve the crisis of Japanese agriculture or not. The structure of Japanese agriculture has changed a great deal since the late 1980s. The rate of decrease of farm household has risen and large farms have increased. But on the other hand, the farmland which is not cultivated has increased very much and the rate of decrease of farmland rises. Farmers who bear Japanese agriculture become older and older every year, but the young who want to be engaged in agriculture are few. Moreover the production index of agriculture has declined since 1986. After all, the increase of large farms arises, bringing the reduction of agricultural product. At present, Japanese agricultural policy reform is being carried out in accordance with the ideas of deregulation and introduction of market mechanism under the influence of the Uruguay Round. Its main aim is to raise agricultural enterprises with the competitive power in international markets. The new policy thinks that the enlarging farms is the most important for that purpose. I doubt whether such policy will be able to overcome the present crisis of Japanese agriculture. Conversely, I think that the new policy will reduce the agricultural product more. We can not overcome the agricultural crisis by only the introduction of market mechanism. It is indispensable to examine the agreement on agriculture of Uruguay Round and establish the land and price policy for that purpose.

View full abstract