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SummaryofGPSPublicationsLibraryupdatedtoApril2018

Contentsbyarea

1. GeopoliticsofFood...................................................................................................................5

AgriculturalTradeInterestsandChallengesattheWTOMinisterialConferenceinBuenosAires.ASouthernConePerspective.............................................................................................5

ConferencefortheCairnsGroupFarmLeaders.........................................................................6

TheG-20MinisterialMeetinginBuenosAires:Theinter-relationsbetweenfoodsecurity,internationaltradeandclimatechangeasanagendaitem.......................................................6

TheXI°WTOMinisterialMeetinginBuenosAires:ThepossibletopicsofAgendafromanagroindustrialperspectiveoftheSouthernCone.......................................................................7

FoodSecurity,WaterScarcity,theG-20AgendaandthestrategicroleofSouthernConeCountries.......................................................................................................................................8

SouthernConeAgriculture:AGlobalContribution....................................................................8

SecuringGlobalFoodSupply:WhatRoleforLatinAmerica’sNetAgriculturalExporters.....9

FoodSecurityandInternationalAgriculturalTrade................................................................10

Argentina,Brazil,ParaguayandUruguay(ABPU)andtheirshareinworldagriculture......11

GlobalFoodSecurityandAgriculturalNaturalResources......................................................12

2. SustainableDevelopmentforGlobalFoodSecurity.............................................................14

Carbonsequestrationinrurallands:Amissinglinkininventories?*....................................14

ThetwofacesofJanus:Foodsecurityintimesofenvironmentaltension.............................15

Beyondthefootprint:Twotalesonwater,carbonandfood...................................................15

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PrioritizingStrategiestoAddressClimateChange:AdaptationandMitigationintheSouthernCone.............................................................................................................................16

Greenhousegases(GHG)mitigationintheruralsectorofArgentina,Brazil,ParaguayandUruguayanditspotentialimpactonglobalfoodandwatersecurity*...................................17

ClimateChangeintheABPUregion:Threatsandopportunities............................................18

SummaryofthecurrentstatusofforestrymanagementandorganizationinABPU.............18

CarbonFootprintandSustainableIntensificationinArgentina,Brazil,ParaguayandUruguay.......................................................................................................................................19

QualityManagementSystemProtocolandGoodManagementPracticesManualforCertifiedAgriculture...................................................................................................................................20

3. RegionalAgroindustrialIntegration......................................................................................21

StrategicDefinitionstostrengthentheMERCOSURagrifoodexporter..................................21

Linkingclimatechange,carbonandtradeintheMERCOSURfoodsystem:Doweneedacommonregionalstrategy?........................................................................................................21

MERCOSUR:Somereflectionsonitspresentandfuture.........................................................22

ProposalforthecreationofaRegionalUnitfortheAnalysisofRisktoAnimalHealth,PlantProtectionandFoodSafetyintheExpandedMERCOSUR.......................................................23

TowardsacollaborativeagroindustrialtradepromotionagendabetweenArgentina,Brazil,ParaguayandUruguay...............................................................................................................24

GoalsandPoliciesfortheArgentineAgriculturalIndustry2015-2020.................................25

ProposedAgroindustrialandRuralDevelopmentPolicies....................................................25

GPSMainactionstobuildregionalintegrationintheagro-industrialsector........................26

Agro-foodintegrationintechnical,healthandqualityregulationsinMERCOSUR................26

AgronegocioBrasileiro2015-2022:ProposalofanActionPlanforPresidents*..................27

MacroeconomiccoordinationintheMERCOSUR:Thereisnonetoday.Willitexistsomeday?..............................................................................................................................................28

TradeandInvestmentPoliciesinABPU:Towardsflexiblecoordinationdemands...............29

OBrasilAcabou?*........................................................................................................................30

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4. InternationalRelations,TradeandInvestment....................................................................32

MERCOSUR-UnitedKingdom:Analysisofcommercialintelligenceforthecaseofagro-industrialgoods..........................................................................................................................32

MERCOSUR-Canada:Analysisofcommercialintelligencebeforeanegotiationofafreetradeagreement.Thecaseofagro-industrialgoods..........................................................................32

PacificAlliance-MERCOSUR:agro-industrialtradeandtradeagreements............................33

EvaluationofcurrentandpotentialagroindustrialtradebetweenMERCOSURandthePacificAlliance............................................................................................................................33

OpportunitiestorelaunchMERCOSUR'sinternationaleconomicnegotiations:Towardsanaggressiveagendaofexternalrelations....................................................................................34

Exportmarketsforcurrentandfutureagroindustrialgoods.................................................35

ProducingCountriesfromtheSouthernCone:BreakdownofandchangesinGDPandthetradebalance...............................................................................................................................35

ParticipationofArgentina,Brazil,ParaguayandUruguay(ABPU)intheagro-foodmarketandglobalgovernance:implicationsof“megaagreements”...................................................36

Argentina’sAgriculturalPolicies,TradeandSustainableDevelopmentObjectives..............37

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1. GeopoliticsofFood

Agricultural Trade Interests and Challenges at the WTO MinisterialConferenceinBuenosAires.ASouthernConePerspective.Piñeiro.M.andPiñeiro,V.;eds.December2017

The last fiveyearshavebeencharacterizedby increasedscrutinyof the impactsandbenefitsofglobalization and by radical changes in several national policies adopted by important worldplayerswhoquestiontheimportanceofglobalandmultilateraltradeagreements.

Paralleltothis,thelastyearshavealsowitnessedincreasedconcernforenvironmentalissuesthatarebeginningtoplayamoreimportantroleindefiningthefutureoftradeandagriculture.

While this was taking place, Latin American countries, and particularly those thatmake up theSouthernCone,continuedtoexpandtheirreachandinfluenceininternationalfoodmarkets,thusconsolidating the region as one of the most important food providers to the world and a keyplayer in global food security. These countries have a particular interest in ensuring thatagriculturaltradeissupportedbytransparentmechanisms,andthattheWTOcontinuestomakeprogresstowardtheachievementofamoreequitableandsustainabletradesystem.

ThisbookwaspresentedwithintheframeworkoftheWTOMinisterialmeetinginBuenosAires,asan effort to share opinions and ideas in order to advance the complex issues that impactagricultural trade, and to provide information on their importance for the economic and socialprogressofthecountriesoftheSouthernConeoftheAmericas.

The document is the result of a joint effort by the International Food Policy Research Institute(IFPRI), Group of Producing Countries from the Southern Cone (GPS), Institute for InternationalAgriculturalNegotiationsFoundation(INAI),BuenosAiresGrainExchange,InternationalCentreforTrade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD), and Inter-American Institute for Cooperation onAgriculture(IICA),andgiventhelimitedprogressoftheXI°Ministerial,itsanalyzesandproposalscontinueinforcetoday.

See full document on https://grupogpps.org/web/agricultural-trade-interests-and-challenges-at-the-wto-ministerial-conference-in-buenos-aires-a-southern-cone-perspective/

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ConferencefortheCairnsGroupFarmLeadersGuillermoVallesGalmés–December2017

InthedaysleadinguptotheXI°MinisterialConferenceofBuenosAires,theRuralAssociationofArgentinaheldaconferencewiththeCairnsFarmLeadersGroup.

ThepresentationfocusedontheroleoftheWorldTradeOrganizationinachanginginternationalenvironment,alsomentioningtheroleoftheCairnsGroupandtheagriculturalproducersofthatgroup.

ThestartingpointoftheconferencewastoexpresstheimportanceoftheexplicitagendaoftheXI°MinisterialConferencefortheagriculturalsector,butalsohighlighttheimplicitagenda,whichmayhaveagreatersignificance.Whatwasputintoplayinthelatterisnotofminorrelevance.

The full document is only available in Spanish at https://grupogpps.org/web/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Presentaci%C3%B3n-Emb-Valles.pdf

The G-20 Ministerial Meeting in Buenos Aires: The inter-relationsbetween food security, international trade and climate change as anagendaitemPiñeiro,M.–June2017

During 2018,Argentinawill host theXIII°Ministerial Conferenceof theG-20.Argentinahas theopportunityandthechallengetoinfluencethespecificcontentsoftheagendaofthemeetingthatrepresentspecificinterestsforthecountriesoftheregionandtheworldingeneral.

TheArgentineGovernmentadvancedthatitwouldbeproposingasamainthemefortheagendatheconsiderationoftheimpactoftechnologiesandglobalizationonstructuralunemploymentanditsimplicationsforeducation.

Theselectedthemeisofcentralimportanceatpresent.Evenmoreifitisdefinedinabroadsensethatincludesthechallengesthatthetechnologieslinkedtorobotics,digitalizationandinformationtechnologyposeinrelationtoprofoundstructuralchangesintherelationshipbetweencapitalandwork.However,atameetingoftheG-20thatwillbeheldinArgentinacan’tbeabsenttheissuesrelatedto:a)worldtradeandb)agriculture/globalfoodsecurity.

The purpose of the article was to initiate a dialogue with the academic organizations thatparticipateintheT20,focusedonanalyzingverysuccinctlytheneedandconvenienceofincludingas an agenda item thedetailed treatmentof agricultural trade and its interrelationswithworldfoodsecurityandtheclimatechange,proposingsomepossiblelinesofcoordinatedactionbythemembercountriesoftheG-20.

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The full document is only available in Spanish at https://grupogpps.org/web/la-reunion-ministerial-del-g20-en-buenos-aires-por-martin-pineiro/

TheXI°WTOMinisterialMeetinginBuenosAires:ThepossibletopicsofAgendafromanagroindustrialperspectiveoftheSouthernConePiñeiro,M.–May2017

TheXI°MCisanimportantmeetingforthefutureoftheWTOandmultilateraltrade.ItisalsoanopportunityforArgentina,asahostcountry,tocontributetothestrengtheningofmultilateralismbyorganizingasuccessfulmeeting.However,itisimportanttokeepinmindthatthepossibilitiesofachievingimportantadvancesinconsolidatingamoreopenandtransparentmultilateraltradearenotveryauspicious.TheDohaRoundinitiatedin2001withambitiousgoalsandintentionsdidnotprogressasexpected.

Ontheotherhand,thenextmeeting inBuenosAireswill takeplace inacomplexanduncertaininternational context inwhich both economic growth andworld trade have stagnated, regionalagreementshaveweakenedandprotectionisttendencieshavere-emergedinalmostallregionsoftheworld.

From an agroindustrial perspective, of special importance and concern for Argentina as a foodexporting country, there are four objectives that emerge as themain ones: a) to achieve somespecificadvancesin issuesthatarecurrentlyundernegotiationintheAgreementonAgriculture,b)strengthentheroleoftheWTOasaforumfornegotiationandconstructionofagreementsonmultilateralcompliancerules,c)protectitsfunctionasanarbitraltribunalincommercialdisputesbetween countries; and d) achieve the installation of a substantive issue related to agriculturaltradethatmayberecognizedasamilestonetorememberthemeetinginBuenosAires.

Thearticletriestoanalyze,fromtheperspectiveoftheagroindustrialinterestsofthecountriesoftheSouthernCone,thecurrentsituationofthenegotiations,theissuesthatremainedpendinginNairobiand identify issuesthatcouldbepartof theworkagendafor theBuenosAiresmeeting.The spirit and objective of the note was to contribute to the installation of a dialogue andconsensusbuildingwithintheprivatesectortothenprogressinapublic/privatedialogueaimedatdefiningtheinterestsofthecountryandtheregioninthelongterm.

The fulldocument isonlyavailable inSpanishathttps://grupogpps.org/web/reunion-ministerial-de-la-omc-en-buenos-aires-posibles-temas-de-la-agenda-desde-la-perspectiva-agroindustrial-del-cono-sur-por-martin-pineiro/

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FoodSecurity,WaterScarcity, theG-20Agendaand thestrategicroleofSouthernConeCountriesViglizzo,E.;Ricard,F;Regúnaga,MandElverdin,P.–January2017

In the next years, the importance of exports in order to satisfy the growing food demand willincrease.Thefuturefoodsecuritywilldependontradeandontheabilityofnetfoodexporterstolocatetheirsurplusesintheinternationalmarketswithoutunjustifiedobstacles.Hereiswherethecountriesof the regionplay an important role, since they account for almost 30percentof thetotalnetfoodexportsworldwide,andthatcontributionisexpectedtoincreaseinthenearfuture.

These concerns have also raised social and political awareness with respect to the growingeconomicscarcityofnatural resources, thepotential impactsofclimatechangeand thedifficultpolitical economic issues that the world will face in the coming years by these reasons. Theseconcernshavealso ledthe InternationalCommunitytoproposespecificmechanismsto improveglobal governance on environmental issues, and recently some compromises of singularmagnitudehavebeenachieved(asthecommitmentmadeintheCOP21shows).

In response to these concerns and proposals, GPS has organized a joint effort to analyze thepotential contributions that the four countries can make to the global food supply and toenvironmentsustainability. In thisway,GPSpresentedat theGreenWeek2017, inBerlin, someideasandproposalsonthemainissuesthatarebeingconsideredontheinternationalagendaintheareasoffoodsecurity,agriculturalnaturalresourcesandclimatechange.

Thedocument isorganized into twosectionsanddealswith threemainsubjects:a) itdescribesthefoodproductioncapacityoftheregion,itsextraordinarypotentialandthesignificantprogressmadeintechnologicalandorganizationalmatters;b)thecontributionoftheregiontoglobalfoodsecurity implementingenvironmentallyfriendlyproductionsystems;andc)theregionalexportofvirtual greenwater, andhow it contributes towater security of the destination countries of itsexports.

See full document on http://grupogpps.org/en/noticias/seguridad-alimentaria-deficit-hidrico-la-agenda-del-g-20-y-el-rol-estrategico-de-los-paises-del-cono-sur-argentina-brasil-paraguay-y-uruguay/

SouthernConeAgriculture:AGlobalContributionValeriaPiñeiroandPabloElverdin-October2016

Theregionneedsrelaunchitsagendaofinternationaleconomicrelations.Ajointnegotiationwiththird countries is an important instrument for improving international competitiveness. ThedecisiontoexcludeitselffrombilateraltradenegotiationscouldnothavenegativeconsequencesiftheDohaRoundhadshownsignificantprogress.However,theunproductivityofthemultilateral

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negotiations, calls into question the absence of a clear and aggressive policy of commercialinsertionoftheregion.

Undoubtedly,increasingtheregion'sexternalrelationshipwillmakeitpossibletoestablishitasarelevant player in ensuring global food security, since for most agricultural exports areconcentratedinafewsupplyingcountriesthatsupplydeficienciesintheremainingregionsoftheworld.However,thiswillnotonlydependonthecountriesoftheSouthernCone,butalsoshouldworkonareviewoftraderulesatthegloballevel.

As consumptionandproductionpatterns continue toevolveat thecurrentpace,world trade inagro-industrialproductsislikelytocontinuetoincreaseinthecomingdecades.By2025,aboutaquarter of the world's population will need to obtain at least 25% of its cereal for food fromimports.By2024theglobalconsumptionofcaloriesfromvegetableandanimalproductswillbeand15%higherthanin2015.

On this basis, global markets are increasingly important as a food source. Any unjustifiedrestrictionmayaffecttheabilitytoobtainfoodfromasubstantialpartofthepopulation.

Now, there is a growingawarenessof the fact that food security is a very serioushumanitarianproblemthatnotonlyrequirestechnicalsolutions.Onthecontrary,itisahighlypoliticalissuethatthe international community has not yet been able to provide a coherent and coordinatedresponse. This highlights the existing constraints in global governance mechanisms, making itnecessarytoprioritizefoodsecurityontheinternationalagenda.

Thefulldocumentonhttps://grupogpps.org/web/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Final-Agricultura-Cono-Sur-v0-Doc-para-Foro-do-Futuro_Eng-22-3-2018.pdf

SecuringGlobalFoodSupply:WhatRoleforLatinAmerica’sNetAgriculturalExportersM.Piñeiro,M.MyersandL.Uzquiza–September2015

Global food demand has expanded rapidly over the past decade, the result in large part ofeconomic growth in a number of developing countries tied to successful public policies,middleclass expansion, and corresponding increases in food consumption. This rise in global fooddemand has been accompanied by a significant increase in non-food-related agriculturalproduction.

Escalating food demandwas not accompanied by equivalent growth in agricultural production,inevitably leading, along with other drivers, to increases in the international prices of major

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agricultural commodities, like the food prices peaked in 2008 during the so-called global foodcrisis.Thecombined impactofhigh foodpricesand foodpricevolatilitypresentedcriticalpolicychallengesfornetfoodimportersinthedevelopingworld,whilehighlightingtheroleofnetfoodexportersinassuringglobalfoodsecurity.

Although international food prices have substantially decreased over the past two years, theyremain higher than before the 2008 crisis and are expected to continue at relatively elevatedlevelsinthecomingyears.Manynetfood-importingcountrieshaveadopteddefensivemeasuresandpoliciestoadjust tothis“newnormal.”Theseactionstendtoaffectonlydomesticmarkets,butsomehaveclearernegativeexternalities in Internationalmarkets.Theyhaveminimal impactoninternationaltradeorglobalfoodsupply.

In addition to domestic measures, some large net food importers—such as China and SaudiArabia—are turning to foreign agriculture to augment their domestic food supply. Althoughdomestic,theseinitiativescarrybroadeconomicandpoliticalimplications.

Thisreport,examinespolicyresponsesbynetimportersandexportersoffoodinlightofsustainedhighfoodpricesandfoodpricevolatility.Itanalyzesthepoliciesandprogramsbeingimplementedtobetterpositionsomecountriesinaworldmarkedbyincreasingfoodsupplyscarcityandrelatedsecurityrisks.

Noting that global governance arrangements have, thus far, done little to mitigate supply andprice risk, Pérez del Castillo offers in the third chapter a proposal for addressing global foodinsecurity.Hecallsforalignment,througharule-basedframeworknegotiatedintheWorldTradeOrganization (WTO), of the long-term objectives of net food-exporting countries and net foodimporters. This framework, he argues,would reduceRelianceondistortionary tradepolicy and,thereby, improve overall conditions for global food security.Meléndez-Ortiz also addresses theneed for trade-related reform in supportof global food security.Hepointsout that agriculturalpricespikeshaveexposedgapsinWTOrulesonagriculturaltrade.

The full document is available at http://grupogpps.org/publicaciones/securingglobalfoodgps-iadbooklet/

FoodSecurityandInternationalAgriculturalTradeCarlosPérezdelCastillo–March2015

Theintentionofthispaperistoprovidesomereflectionsregardingthepossibilitiesofdealingwithglobal food security concerns in the framework of theWTO. This could be done as part of theongoingmultilateral agricultural negotiations of the Doha Round, or eventually, in a post-DohaProgramofWorkonAgriculture.

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Before those reflections, itmakes a revision of the enhanced relevance of food security in theinternational agenda, the new global context (increasingworld demand, price volatility, climatechange, etc.) and international agricultural trade actual situation. It determines that theinternationalcommunitywillhavetorelymoreandmoreoninternationalfoodtradetodealwithfoodsecurityconcerns.So, itaskswheretopursuethoseglobaleffortsandwhich istheexistinginstitutional framework that provides the best possibilities to successfully achieve this neededlevelofinternationalcooperationregardingfoodsecurity.

Then, it gives somepreliminary thought to theelementsof anegotiatingproposalbetweennetfoodexportingandnetfoodimportingcountriesthatcouldbeconsideredbybothparties.Inthiscontext, it admits that there is very little time and in particular very little space, for theintroductionofthebroaderconceptofglobalfoodsecurityinthecurrentDohaRoundagriculturalnegotiations. So it concludes that the introduction of this proposal should perhaps be betteraimedat thepost-DohaWTOProgrammeofWork regardingagriculturebecause toaddress theglobal food security issue in a sectorial Agriculture negotiationmay be easier and have certainadvantages over its consideration in the framework of aMultilateral Trade Round dealingwithmanyotherissues.

The full document is available at http://grupogpps.org/en/publicaciones/food-security-and-international-agricultural-trade/

Argentina,Brazil,ParaguayandUruguay(ABPU)andtheirshareinworldagriculturePabloElverdin–August2014

ThepurposeofthisreportistoprovideabriefdescriptionofagricultureinthecountriesofABPU,theirrelevancetoproductsandexports,aswellasatthelevelofemploymentandinvestment.

ThispaperseekstoshowthesignificanceofthecountriesofABPUinworldagriculturalGDP.Forsuchpurpose,itcomparesthechangesinGDPandinagriculturalGDPinthefourcountriesvis-à-vis the rest of the world; such comparison shows that these South American countries havebecome more important in terms of their contribution to both agricultural and total worldproduction,andhavesignificantlyincreasedtheircontributiontotheglobaleconomyinthelast20years.

While the share in world GDP has grown to mean, jointly, 4% of global production, thecontributionofABPUcountrieswouldbeevengreaterifwetakeintoaccountthecontributionofagribusiness considering that the weight of GDP generated by the expanded agriculture incountrieslikeArgentinaandUruguaymultipliedseveraltimestheGDPofagriculture.

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Ananalysisofagro-industrialtradeshowsthatworldagrifoodtradeevolvedmorethantotaltrade.AsinthecaseofGDP,thecontributionofthecountriesofABPUtotheworldflowofexportshasincreasedinthelastdecadeandnowaccountsfor9%ofworldtradeinthesegoods.

As regards agricultural employment, there has been a marked drop in its share in totalemployment,bothatregionalandgloballevels.Similarly,totalagriculturalfarmsalsofell-exceptinUruguay-.

Then,itdiscussesinvestmentsinagriculture,includingbothprivate(equipment,facilitiesandperworker)andpublicinvestments(inR&D),aswellaschangesinforeigndirectinvestment(FDI)andthe destination of such investments in the region. The last section discusses the use ofagrochemicalsandfertilizers.

The full document is available at http://grupogpps.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/Argentina-Brazil-Paraguay-and-Uruguay-ABPU-and-their-share-in-world-agriculture-Elverdin-1.pdf

GlobalFoodSecurityandAgriculturalNaturalResourcesRoleandviewsofArgentina,Brazil,ParaguayandUruguay

September2013

Thedocumentaddressestheissueofglobalfoodsecurity,theneedtoproduceincreasinglymorefood, at reasonable prices, using natural resources in an efficient and sustainable way. In thiscontexttheroleandviewsofArgentina,Brazil,ParaguayandUruguay(ABPU)are,examinedgiventheirimportanceinworldfoodproduction.

Afterthe introduction,Chapter IIanalyzesthefuturechallengesofglobal foodsecurity inanewcontext,present since thebeginningof this century,where fooddemand is growing faster thansupply,withaconsequentfallinstocksandarisingofprices.

In Chapter III ABPU’s international role is addressed in relation to achieving food securitywithenvironmental sustainability. First, the recentdevelopments in LatinAmericaand theCaribbean(LAC) are analyzed to then describe their strategic role, given their endowment of naturalresources, human capital available, adequate institutional framework and rapid transfer oftechnology,particularlyinABPU.Also,thereareproductionprojectionsforABPUto2021anditspotentialimpactonworldtrade.Then,ABPU’scountriesproductionsystemsandbusinessmodelsaredescribed,bothrenownedfortheirefficiencyandenvironmentalfriendliness.Finally,politicaleconomy issues are addressed, particularly the regulation and control over land suitable forcultivationineachcountry.

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Then,inChapterIVaviewfromABPUonsomekeyissuesontheinternationalagendaisdescribed.Someofthetopicsare:worldwideagriculturalR&D;technicalassistancetodevelopingcountries,including North-South and South–South cooperation; infrastructure investment and innovationalong the value chain; institutional strengthening; rational expansion to new agricultural areas;international tradebarriers; price formationmechanisms; developmentof anewgenerationoffertilizers;andbio-fuelsproduction.

Finally,ChapterVanalyzes the treatmentbeinggiven to food securityandnatural resourcesonthe international agenda, addressed from eight areas of analysis: food security; food pricesvolatility; the formation of a specialized forum on agricultural natural resources; foreigninvestmentinagriculturalland;innovationandinternationaltechnologytransfertolessdevelopedcountries; private standards in international trade; elimination of subsidies; biofuels productionandconsumption.

The full document is available at http://grupogpps.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/GPS_BOOK_ON_FOOD_SECURITY.pdf

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2. SustainableDevelopmentforGlobalFoodSecurity

Carbonsequestrationinrurallands:Amissinglinkininventories?*ErnestoViglizzoyFlorenciaRicard-November2017

Climate scientists generally agree that themethods recommended by the IPCC predicting withacceptable rigor the internal emissions of the countries. But in the estimates of carbonsequestration, there are uncertainties and methodological doubts that are the subject ofdiscussion and debate. A change in the method can drastically modify the results of a carbonbalance.

Theobjectiveofthisstudyistorecalculatecarbonbalancesthroughanalternativemethodologyaimed at assessing the capture and sequestration of carbon in rural and natural lands of theMERCOSURregion.

Theanalysiswasexclusivelyfocusedonthechangesthatoccurintherootbiomassofthebiomesstudied,sincethereservesofcarboninrootsareamorestablecomponentthanthecarbonoftheaerialbiomass.Thecarboninorganicmatterofsoilisnottotallyappropriateforestimatingannualflowsofsequesteredcarbonbecauseitschangesaremeasuredanddetectedinlongerterms.

The carbon balances in this research are presented in three components that correspond (i) tolivestock,(ii)tograinagricultureand(iii)tochangesinlanduse.

Computing catches, all the balances of pastoral livestock systems in the region were positive,although the results show large absolute differences between the four countries. At the sametime,thegeneralbalancesoftheruralsectorinthefourcountriesshowapositivebalancetothatcurrentlyusedwiththeIPCCmethodology.

Theseevidencesfromthescientificliteratureshowthatthedebateaboutcarbonsequestrationisfarfrombeingclosed,andthattheresultsofthisstudyaddadifferentmethodologicalperspectivetoevaluatethesameproblem.Althoughtheworkcontributestothedebate,theiranswersarenotyetcategoricalsincemoreestimatesareneededtovalidatethemethodandthecarbonbalanceoftheruralsectorthathavebeencalculated.

The full document is only available in Spanish at https://grupogpps.org/web/secuestro-de-carbono-en-tierras-rurales-un-eslabon-perdido-en-los-inventarios/

*Versionunderreview

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ThetwofacesofJanus:FoodsecurityintimesofenvironmentaltensionErnestoViglizzo-September2017

Thecurrentsocialreflexseemstoindicatethattheproductionoffoodandthepreservationoftheenvironmentunfoldandfacealongalineoffissure.Alineofconceptualrupturedividesopinionsbetweenthosewhodefendaproductivistvisionthatignoresenvironmentalproblems,andthosewhoprivilegeitbypassingtheneedtofeedtheworld.

Overtheyears,growinginimportancealineofthoughtthattendstoseetheruralsectorasarisktoecosystems.Thosewhothinkdifferentlybelievethatwithoutincreasedfoodproductionitwillnot be possible to deactivate the consequences of the demographic bomb that threatens theplanet.Thedilemma,inessence,istoclarifyhowmuchthereisscientificcertainty,andhowmuchuncertainty,inthosetwovisionsfaced.

No complex speculationsor sophisticated calculationsareneeded to reachobvious conclusions.An elementary reasoning is sufficient to realize that the environment deteriorates and naturalresourcesareexhausted.Andthat,while thathappens,weneedmoreandmore foodtosatisfythedemandofahumanpopulationthatmultipliesatworrisomerates.Wefacetheimperativeoffeeding9billionsoulsby2050andstopping,at thesametime,globalwarming,climatechange,andotherundesirableeffectsofecologicalandenvironmentaldegradation.

Theobjectiveofthissmallworkistoexplorethesequestions.Thereareseveralwaystodoit,butithasbeenprivilegedtousethebestscientificinformationavailable.However,ithasbeenwritteninasimplifiedmannersothatitcanbereadandunderstoodbyanon-specializedpublic.However,rather than looking for definitive answers, thework asks challenging questions for theproblemexposed.

The full document is only available in Spanish at https://www.grupogpps.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/Las_dos_caras_de_Jano.pdf

Beyondthefootprint:Twotalesonwater,carbonandfoodErnestoViglizzoandFlorenciaRicard-April2017

Global warming, climate change and water scarcity have emerged as three big environmentalchallenges that nowadays are also affecting the sustainability of food production and socio-economicdevelopment.

Thus, the issue of carbon and water footprints has been cause of increasing concern of food-exportingcountriesintheSouthernConeCountries(Argentina,Brazil,ParaguayandUruguay).Thefear thatagricultural footprints canbeusedasargument to raisecommercialbarriersor triggerprotectionistpolicies intraditionalmarkets iscauseofgrowingconcern intheregion.Therefore,

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theaimof this lecture is toput incontext thequestionofwateruse,carbonemissionand foodproductionintheSouthernConeregionandproposestrategicwaystoundertaketheissue.

Because of its large availability of land and renewable water, the region plays an increasingstrategicrole inglobal foodandwatersecuritybyexportingfoodandvirtualwatertofood-andwater-scarce countries. Fair tradeandopenmarketsare theways toguarantee foodandwatersecuritytoanincreasinglyinterconnectedworld.

The scientific evidence does not support thatmarkets can use the notion ofwater and carbonfootprint to raisepotential tradebarrier. Thewaterembedded in foodand the carbon releasedthroughoutthefoodchaininvariousfoodexportcountriesisfullyirrelevantinpracticaltermsandhavenomeasurableimpactontheglobalwaterandcarbonbalance.Problemsrelatedtocarbonemission and water use in agriculture should be resolved on broad-scale basis beyond theinconsequentialsmall-scalefootprintview.

Thefulldocumentisavailableathttp://grupogpps.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Beyond-the-footprint-MFR-27-03-17-_2_.pdf

Prioritizing Strategies to Address Climate Change: Adaptation andMitigationintheSouthernConeErnestoViglizzo–August2015

Climatechangeisoverwhelmingandtheinternationalcommunitydemandspromptsolutions.Itsconsequencesarefeltataquickerpacethanthatpredictedbyscientists.Giventhatconsequencesgo beyond national borders, common sense dictates thatwemust address the problemwith aunifiedregionalvision.

Thereare threemain concerns in connectionwith thewayclimatechangeaffectsagriculture intheABPUregion:i)thevulnerabilityofruralareas,ii)adjustmentofagriculturetoclimatechange;iii)mitigationof greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) in agricultural production and the agriculturalindustry.

It is likely that international pressure on food producing countries to reduce their GHG willincrease in the future. But this could not be achieved in practice without drastically reducingcurrentagriculturalproductionlevels.Whatwouldthisimplyintermsofinternationalmitigation,ontheonehand,andintermsoffoodandwatersecurityontheother?

Takingthatintoaccount,thedocumentsummarizesGPS’positionwithrespecttoclimatechangeandagricultureasfollows:

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(1)TheshareofagricultureintheeconomyofABPUcountriescannotbereducedwithoutseverelyaffectingglobalfoodandwatersecurity;

(2)Thenon-voluntaryreductionofagriculturalproductionintheABPUregionwouldonlyresultinaninsignificantreductioninGHGemissionsattheglobalscale;

(3) In ABPU countries, non-voluntary removal of ruminants from production systemswouldprobablycause irreversibledamagetocommercial foodproductionandtothesmall ruralcommunitieslivingonmarginallandthatisnotsuitableforgrainorthebreedingofnon-ruminantspecies.

(4)Instrategicterms,commonsenseindicatesthattheABPUregionshouldgiveprioritytoprocessesforadaptingtoclimatechangeratherthantothosetomitigateGHG.

Thefulldocumentisavailableathttp://grupogpps.org/en/publicaciones/documento-de-posicion-priorizando-estrategias-frente-al-cambio-climatico/#more-1916

Greenhouse gases (GHG) mitigation in the rural sector of Argentina,Brazil,ParaguayandUruguayanditspotentialimpactonglobalfoodandwatersecurity*ErnestoViglizzoandFlorenciaRicard–July2015

This work analyzes current figures of GHG emission in the ABPU region and, the same time,current figures and trends of food and virtual water exports from this region. By linking thosefactors, it discusses the ABPU capacity to mitigate GHG emissions in the rural sector, and itsrelationtoglobalfoodandwatersecurity.

First,itshowsthat,afteraperiodofpersistentGHGincrease,emissionstendedtodeclineinABPUduring the last decade. This behavior can be explained by factors such as national policies andmarket events thathavediscouraged thedeforestationofnew lands, particularly in the caseofBrazilandArgentina,orboostedafforestationinthecaseofUruguay.Ontheotherhand,privateand public organizations have made a considerable effort to boost the incorporation ofminimum/zero-tillingpracticesthatreducefossilenergyconsumptionandGHGemissions.Despitedisparities among countries, the widespread adoption of reduced tillage was an outstandingachievementoftheregion.

Then,itasksabouttherolethatABPUagricultureplaysinglobalfoodandwatersecurity.Itshowsthe importanceofABPU region forprovidingwater security toChinaandEuropeanUnion (EU).Through the trade of grains andmeats, ABPU countries provide in average 30% of the "virtualwater"thatChinaandEUpurchasedintheworld.

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Finally,itpresentsatrilemmaamongcarbonmitigation,foodandwatersecurity.Itconcludesthatadisproportionateprice shouldbepaid in termsof global foodandwater security toachieveanegligible reduction of global GHG emissions. The most basic reasoning indicates that suchstrategywouldbeunsuitableaswellasimpracticablebothinregionalandglobalterms.Commonsenseindicatesthatmitigationstrategiesshouldnotbefocusedonfoodproduction,butonthoseeconomic sectors that todayhave thehigher technological andoperativepossibilityof reducingGHGemissions.Itremarksthataneyeshouldfirstbeputonemissionsincountry-energysystems,residentialandpublicbuildings,luxurywastesandtransportmeans.

The full document is available at http://grupogpps.org/publicaciones/greenhouse-gases-ghg-mitigation-in-the-rural-sector-of-argentina-brazil-paraguay-and-uruguay-and-its-potential-impact-on-global-food-and-water-security/

ClimateChangeintheABPUregion:ThreatsandopportunitiesErnestoViglizzo-March2015

Climatechangeissweepingtheplanetandrequirestheinternationalcommunitytotakesensibledecisions.Inthiscontext,thispaperaddressestheimplicationsforABPU,giventheimportanceofthesecountriesforglobalfoodsecurity.

ThedocumentdescribesthemainvulnerabilitiesoftheABPUregiontoclimatechange,thetrendscurrentlyobservedandthefuturescenarios.Itthenunderlinestheneedtoadvanceinadaptationmeasurestoclimatechangeandcitesautonomousadaptationexamples.

Atsametime,itisdefinedasurgenttomakeprogressinmitigatingwarming,butanalyzingABPU’sresponsibilityinitandcomparingemissionswithcountrieswithhigherpercapitaincome.

All this leads to challenge the arguments that put into question ABPU agriculture due to itscurrentagriculturalproductionsystems,showingitslowimpactonGHGemissions,thereductioninratesofdeforestation,amongotherenvironmentalvariables.

The full document is available at http://grupogpps.org/en/publicaciones/cambio-climatico-en-la-region-abpu-argentina-brasil-paraguay-y-uruguay-amenazas-y-oportunidades/#more-1701

SummaryofthecurrentstatusofforestrymanagementandorganizationinABPU.GPS-September2014

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Through its local partners,GPSmakes available a compendiumof the existing legal framework,andthelawsapplicabletoforestryineachofthefourcountriesoftheregion.Italsomakesabriefhistoricalreviewoftheactivitybycountryandofitsimportanceineachofsuchcountries.

ThefulldocumentisonlyavailableinSpanishathttp://grupogpps.org/category/publicaciones/page/2/

Carbon Footprint and Sustainable Intensification in Argentina, Brazil,ParaguayandUruguayErnestoViglizzo–May2014

The work carries out an analysis of the carbon footprint in primary agricultural production inArgentina,Brazil,ParaguayandUruguaywhichallowsdetectdiverseandheterogeneousbehaviorsamongthefourcountries.

This is done in a context that has concluded that a regional problem to be prioritized is theassessmentof the carbon footprint agricultural lands in the four countries, given that the rapidexpansionof theagricultural frontier,especially inArgentinaandBrazil, iscausingahighrateofconversion of natural into agricultural and grazing lands. This transformation is inevitablyaccompaniedbyGHGemissions (carbondioxide,methane andnitrousoxide) normally resultingfromhumaninterventionsonnaturallandsofforests,savannasandgrasslands.

This analysis focuses on two environmental concepts that will have a growing importance ascommercialbarriers to the internationalmarketofagriculturalproducts increase: (a) thecarbonfootprintand(b)thesustainabilityoftheintensificationofproductionsystems.

The study covers the four countries that compose the ABPU region. But, as a comparison, thisanalysis includes indicators taken fromFranceasadevelopedcountrywitha strongagriculturalsector.ThebasicideaistocompareourindicatorswiththoseofFranceasacountrythatnormallyhasacriticalpositionabouttheenvironmentalactionsofthird-countriesthatexportfood,fibersandbiofuel.

The results of this study demonstrate that the carbon footprints of Argentina andUruguay aresomewhatlowerthanthoseofBrazilandParaguay.However,thereisaremarkableaspectinfavorofBrazil andParaguay.Both countries showvery clear trends toward the so-called "sustainableintensification” concept, which is ameasure of the fall in negative environmental impacts as aresultofintensifiedandincreasedcropandlivestockyieldsonlandalreadyinuse.ArgentinaandUruguayarealsoalignedtothesameprocess,althoughtheirtrendsarenotsopronounced.

Together,thefourcountriesshowtrendsthatpermitcomparingadvantageouslytothetrendsofothermoredevelopedcountries.FromtheanalyzeddataandresultswecaninferthattheABPU

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region is successfully harmonizing its great productive potential with an environmentallysustainableagriculturalpolicyinthelongterm.

The full document is available at http://grupogpps.org/documentos/GPS-CARBON_FOOTPRINT-Viglizzo-Jun2014-2.pdf

Quality Management System Protocol and Good Management PracticesManualforCertifiedAgriculture

Aapresid-March2013

ThisprotocolspecifiestherequirementstobemetinorderfortheQualityManagementSystemtobeproperlydevelopedandimplemented.Itisvoluntaryandcertifiable.

Certified Agriculture (CA) is a Quality Management System (QMS) that seeks to certify theadvantages of implementing a No-Till productionmodel based on the principles of sustainable,profitable and highly productive agriculture. Farmers have a great responsibility to applyproduction schemes that underpin such principles, particularly in the current globalized world,wheresocietydemandsmoreandmoreforcefullyrespectfortheenvironmentandforpeople.

ThepurposeofthisQMSistoprovidethetoolstoachieveaprofessional,efficientandsustainableagriculturalandcorporatemanagementthroughtheknowledgeandanalysisofinformation,whichincludes: recordsofactivities carriedout,quality indicatorsof thenaturalandhuman resourcesinvolvedandenergyandproductionefficiencyindicators.

CA also allows society to know how food production processes are carried out andwhat theirimpact on the environment is, thereby making it possible to capture the value of the positiveexternalityexercisedonit.

In short, CertifiedAgriculture as aqualitymanagement systementails: improvingefficiency andeffectivenessandthus,theprofitsofagriculturalenterprises;foreseeingallkindsofcontingencies,andthepossibleopeningofnewmarketsorotherbusinessopportunities.

Thefulldocumentisavailableathttp://grupogpps.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Good_Management_Practices_Manual_and_QMS_Protocol_Certified_Agriculture.pdf

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3. RegionalAgroindustrialIntegration

StrategicDefinitionstostrengthentheMERCOSURagrifoodexporterIdígoras,G.andPapendieck,S.–March2018

The purpose of the document is to propose the debate of a proactive agenda with acomprehensivevisionofMERCOSUR,inordertoachieveagrowingexportprofileoftheagrifoodchainsofthecountriesofthecommercialbloc.

Fordo this, sevenstrategicpointshavebeen identified that couldbepartofagovernmentandprivatework agenda. The selection of these seven areas arises from the previouswork of GPSwhereeachpointhasbeenanalyzedparticularlyandconsideredstrategictoachieveaMERCOSURagro-foodexporter.

It is not simple to choose which of these areas of work is the most relevant or to make aprioritization given that we would be mistakenly proposing isolated actions that have alreadydemonstrateda lowlevelofefficiency.That iswhyweproposeherean integralvision,that is,aholisticstrategicagendathatallowsjointpublic-privateworkwithmultipleareas.

Inthisexerciseofarticulationoftheagendaweconsiderveryimportanttheinvolvementofvaluechainsandthemostrepresentativeprivateentities/institutionsofthefourcountriessothattheyadopt this integral vision and commit their energies to this process to collaborate with thegovernmentsoftheMERCOSURcountries.

The full document is only available in Spanish at https://grupogpps.org/web/definiciones-estrategicas-para-fortalecer-el-mercosur-agroalimentario-exportador/

Linkingclimatechange,carbonandtradeintheMERCOSURfoodsystem:Doweneedacommonregionalstrategy?Piñeiro,M.andViglizzo,E.–March2018.

Matching the future demand of food can be possible with current knowledge and technicalprogress, but a greater impact in terms of greenhouse gases (GHG) and other environmentalissues, is cause of increasing concern. So, the big question is how to produce more food inresponse to the increasing population demand improving, in parallel, the environmentalperformanceoffoodproduction.ConsideringtheincreasingroleofMERCOSURcountriesinglobal

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foodsecurity,a commonregional strategyseems tobequitenecessary to face thechallengeofharmonizingfoodproductionwithenvironmentaltargets.

ThemainchallengesfortheMERCOSURregionarehowtomitigateGHGemissionsandadaptitsfood-productionsystemtoclimatechangeandotherenvironmentalthreats.Adilemmaisopeningin the regions:arenationalGHG inventoriesestimatingcarbonsequestration ina rigorousway?Somescientificevidencesuggests that this issuehas toberevisited.TheapplicationofmethodsdifferenttothoserecommendedbyIPCCcandrasticallychangedecarbonbalanceofcountriesinthe region, and this may request a revision of current international commitments and targets.Likewise, a revision of carbon footprint frameworks to assess the agri-food business is quitenecessary,especiallywhenthisparametercanbeusedtoraisecommercialbarriers.

Thenotionofsustainable intensificationappearstobesuitabletotheregionsince it impliesthedouble objective of increasing or maintaining gross productivity with less land and a lowerenvironmentalimpact.

High-techadoptionbyfood-exportingcountrieswillincreasinglycontributetoglobalfood,climateandwatersecurityiffree-tradeconditionsareenhancedworldwide.Thereareintangibleservicesthatcanbenefitfood-demandingcountries.Theactualandpotentialtransferenceoffood,virtualwater,carbonandnutrientscanallowthemtoreplenishtheirdegradedaquifersandrecovertheirexhaustedcarbonandnutrientstocksaftermanyyearsofagriculturaloverexploitation.Freetradecertainly will play a major role in the transference of environmental sustainability from somecountriestoothers.

See full document on https://grupogpps.org/web/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Linking-climate-change-final-PDF-con-tapa.pdf

MERCOSUR:SomereflectionsonitspresentandfutureMartínPiñeiro,FélixPeñaandRaúlOchoa-May2017

ThecreationofMERCOSURhadseveralobjectives.Atthebeginning,theprincipalswerepoliticalandhadagreat importance. In thatcontext, the trade issuegrew in importanceover time,andthenstagnated.

This failure was perhaps not so important in the beginning, when multilateralism was thedominantschemeininternationaltrade.DuringthisperiodtherulesoftradeweredefinedatthemultilaterallevelandthenegotiationeffortwasmadewithintheframeworkoftheWTO.

More recently, multilateralism has been weakened and was partially supplanted by theproliferationofbilateralandregionalagreements.Thesetypesofagreementshavebeenthemain

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areas of negotiation, where the MERCOSUR countries have been largely absent from theseprocesses.

Thisabsencewasduetotwomainreasons:a)ThelimitationsimposedbytheMERCOSURtreatyitself,whichestablishes theobligation tonegotiateasabloc;andb)Thedifficulties imposedbythe political situation in threeMERCOSUR partners whominimized the importance of trade intheirdevelopmentstrategies.

Inresponse,thechallengeistoreflectontheexistinginstitutionalmechanismsandtheadditionalactionsor instrumentsthatcouldbedesignedtopreservetheessenceofMERCOSUR,givingthefoundingmembersagreaterdegreeofflexibilitytodeepentraderelationswiththirdcountries.Inviewofthis,fourpossiblelinesofreasoningareproposed:

I. DevelopordeepensectoralagreementsbetweenthefourMERCOSURcountriesoramongasubsetofthem.

II. Develop new bilateral economic complementarity agreements between MERCOSURpartnersandthirdcountries

III. Extend the background of the Framework Agreement betweenMERCOSUR andMexico(ACE54)tootherexistingACEswiththecountriesofthePacificAlliance.ACE54authorizeseachoftheMERCOSURpartnerstosignFTAsindividuallywithothersALADImembers.

IV. IntroduceadecisionbytheCouncilofMERCOSUR,withintheframeworkofthelegislationreferred to the AEC, which provides that the Council may exceptionally authorize anymembertodevelopapreferentialtradeagreement(FTA)withathirdcountry.

Inanycase,thesepossiblerelaxationshouldnotweakentheintentiontonegotiateasaregionalblocwithselectedcountriesandregions.

The full document is only available in Spanish at https://www.grupogpps.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/MERCOSUR-Algunas-reflexiones-sobre-su-presente-y-futuro-FINAL-con-M.pdf

Proposal for the creation of a Regional Unit for the Analysis of Risk toAnimal Health, Plant Protection and Food Safety in the ExpandedMERCOSURGustavoIdígoras–October2015

ThispapermakesaproposalforthecreationofaRegionalUnitforRiskAnalysis;itdescribesthebackgroundinMERCOSUR,thereasonswhysuchUnitisnecessaryandtheexpectedresults.

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Technical barriers to trade have become a serious problem for the economies of developingcountries. The main difficulty is the implementation of risk analyses, which can provide thescientificbasistoallowtheentryoftheirproductstointernationalmarkets.

Duetonationalweaknessesinthedevelopmentofhealthriskassessments,itwouldbereasonabletodevelopasharedregionalstrategythatpromotesacommontechnicalandscientificareathatgenerates the health information needed to open markets, reduce assessment times in thirdcountries,keepmarketswithhighrequirementsopen,promoterecommendationsatinternationalorganizationsandcooperateinthetechnicalpositioningattheWTO.

Particularly worth noting among the expected results is the contribution to the design of thecreation of a MERCOSUR Regional Risk Analysis Program in the expanded MERCOSUR (CAS);cooperationinthedesignoftheregionaloperatingstructure;promotingtheopeningofmarkets;strengtheningtechnicalpositionsininternationalorganizations,etc.

ThepapermakesaproposalanddescribestheproblemsonwhichtheUnitshouldfocus,itsduties,itspriorityareas,itsorganization,structure,operatingmethodanditsaimsandrelationswiththeprivatesectorandMERCOSUR.

The full document is only available in Spanish at http://grupogpps.org/publicaciones/titulo-propuesta-para-la-creacion-de-una-unidad-regional-de-analisis-de-riesgo-para-sanidad-animal-proteccion-vegetal-e-inocuidad-de-los-alimentos-en-el-mercosur-ampliado/

TowardsacollaborativeagroindustrialtradepromotionagendabetweenArgentina,Brazil,ParaguayandUruguayNorbertoPontiroli-.July2015

Theworkpresents, inasyntheticway,aproposalofcollaborationbetweenthemaininstitutionsofcommercialpromotionofthefourcountriesoftheregion.Todothis,itcarriesoutananalysisof the institutional structures, their objectives and the main tools available to prioritize theseobjectives.

Finally, it analyzes the levelof support to theagroindustrial sectorswithineachagencyand thetype of pre-eminent actions, as well as the detection of those events with the participation ofmorethanoneregionalagency.

The full document is only available in Spanish at http://grupogpps.org/publicaciones/hacia-una-agenda-colaborativa-de-promocion-comercial-agroindustrial-entre-abpu/

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GoalsandPoliciesfortheArgentineAgriculturalIndustry2015-2020PabloElverdin–January2015

In viewof the significant roleour regionwillplay in supplyinggrowingworld fooddemand, theGroup of Producing Countries from the Southern Cone was created in 2012 as a forum fordiscussionandgenerationofproposals for thestrengthening,developmentandevolutionof theregioninagroindustrialmatters.

This document therefore takes as a starting point the need to unify standards with the othercountriesrepresentedinGPSandistheresultofjointthoughtwithvariousvaluechainsthatarepartofGPSinArgentina.ItsaimistoidentifyproblemsdeemedtobecriticalintheformulationofGovernment policies in Argentina to promote agro industrial progress, social equality andequitableterritorialdevelopment.

To achieve such goals, we believe that improving technologies, increased productivity, valueaggregation, product differentiation, participation in international trade, social equity and theprotectionoftheenvironmentmustbethemainprinciplesonwhichpolicydecisionsarebased.

That is why public policies need to be developed to support such aims and to boost theimportanceofourcountryinglobalfoodandenergytrade,forwhichthereisapromisingfutureand growing international demand is predicted. It is against this backdrop thatGPS submits forconsiderationanumberofpoliciesor actionsdesigned to recognize the importanceof theagroindustrial system in the domestic productionmatrix and to strengthen the sector’s capacity forgrowthandgenerationofemployment.

Thefulldocument isonlyavailable inSpanishathttp://grupogpps.org/publicaciones/objetivos-y-politicas-para-la-agroindustria-argentina-2015-2020/

ProposedAgroindustrialandRuralDevelopmentPoliciesGPS-January2015

Argentinahasahugeproductionpotential(intheagricultural,mining,manufacturingandenergysectors). Despite this, for over 8 decades our country has not exhibited sustained growth, butrather alternating cycles of growth and stagnation, which have entailed limited long-termprogress,whencomparedtocountrieswithsimilarresources(Australia,NewZealand,Brazil,etc.)

Based on the foregoing, the paper brings together the main points of “Argentine AgriculturalPolicies and sustainable development objectives” byMarcelo Regúnaga and Agustín Tejada, forthe International Center for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) - January 2015 and“ObjectivesandPoliciesfortheArgentineAgriculturalIndustry2015-2010”preparedbytheGroupofProducingCountriesoftheSouthernCone(GPS)andcoordinatedbyMr.PabloElverdín.

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Thefulldocumentisonlyavailable inSpanishathttp://grupogpps.org/publicaciones/propuestas-de-politicas-agroindustriales-y-de-desarrollo-rural/

GPS Main actions to build regional integration in the agro-industrialsectorMartínPiñeiro–December2014

Thispapersummarizestheguidelines,presentedinvariousdocumentsproducedbyGPS,withthegoal of moving towards a greater regional integration of MERCOSUR. To do this, it takes as astartingpointtheneedtoknowthe initialsituationstatus,themainexistingconstraintsandthepriorityareasortopicswhereitwouldbeconvenienttomoveforward,indentifyingthefollowing:

a) Promote a development strategy that relies on agro-industrial production and thatseeks topromote trade and chainproduction integrationamong the four countriesandofthesewiththerestoftheworld;

b) Develop common rules in the four countries to promote investment in the agro-industrial sector to promote the integration of production chains and cross- borderinvestmentsaimedatdevelopingtrans-latincompanies;

c) Promoteaninvestmentprogramforthedevelopmentofconnectivitythatcontributestothephysicalintegrationofthefourcountries;

d) Contributetothedevelopmentofaroadmapformutualrecognitionandequivalencesin theapproval and registrationofmanufacturingestablishmentsof foodanddrinksincludingagriculturalinputsandseeds.

Thefulldocument isavailableathttp://grupogpps.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/MP-Cuatro-Propuestas_Eng-29-12-14.pdf

Agro-food integration in technical, health and quality regulations inMERCOSURGustavoIdígoras–November2014

TheworkinghypothesisthatservesasthebasisforthisstudyisthebeliefthatanydevelopmentofanagroindustrialplatforminABPUmustbebasedonanintegrationthat isreal,comprehensiveandfunctionaltoachievetheaimofbeingaregionthatisafoodsupplierpreparedtoaddressthechallengesoffoodsecurityincomingyears.

Theaimof thestudy is togenerateproposalsoncritical issuestoprogresstowardsanagri foodintegrationthatisfunctionalfortheexportinginterestsoftheregionalagriculturalindustry.

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The integration of regional value chains may only be achieved if there is a high level ofharmonization of health, phytosanitary, safety and quality requirements for the food andbeveragesproduced,processedandexportedintheregion.Inotherwords,agri-foodexportswithadded value cannot be promoted in the absence of reciprocal health equivalences andrecognitionsthatallowthefreecirculationofagro-industrialproducts.

AreviewoftheworkofMERCOSURsinceitsinceptionshowsthatonly9meetingsofMinistersofAgriculturewereheldin22years,while,inonedecade,theMinistersmetwithintheframeworkoftheSouthernAgriculturalCouncil(CAS)on36occasions.Infact,thelastmeetingsofMinistersofAgricultureofMERCOSURwereheldwithintheframeworkofCASmeetings. ItwouldthusseemthatCASistheonlyforumforpoliticallinksamongtheMinistersofAgricultureoftheregion,andtherefore,theplacewhereanyproposalorideashouldbeputforwardinorderforittohavesomekindofrepercussion.

WhilemuchworkhasbeendoneonharmonizingphytosanitarystandardsatMERCOSURworkinggroups,suchstandardsareonlyestablishedforintraregionaltradeandinmanycasestheyarenotappliedbecauseoneof thecountrieshas failed tomake the regional ruleapartof itsdomesticregulations or establishes domestic requirements that are inconsistent with such regionalharmonization.

The only area where there has been actual policy coordination and high participation atMERCOSURlevelistheSpecializedMeetingonFamilyAgriculture(REAF).MERCOSURhasdecidedtomoveforwardonpoliticaldefinitionssolelydesignedtostrengthenFamilyAgricultureactions,programsandprojects,andhasabandonedthevisionofpromotingagroindustrialchainsandtheirinternational integration. There is no participation of representatives of producing sectors ofexportingagri-foodchains;suchrepresentativesonlyparticipateinCASmeetings.

Itisbelievedthatharmonizationofregulationsisthebasisforthefacilitationofagrifoodtradeandthatitisanecessaryconditiontoallowforregionalproductionlinkagesandtomaketheplatformforexportingfoodtotheworldareality.

The full document is only available in Spanish at http://grupogpps.org/en/publicaciones/estado-de-la-integracion-agroalimentaria-en-reglamentos-tecnicos-sanidad-y-calidad-en-el-mercosur-a-cargo-de-gustavo-idigoras/#more-1470

Agronegocio Brasileiro 2015-2022: Proposal of an Action Plan forPresidents*FundacaoGetulioVargas-Septiember2014

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Document prepared byGetulio Vargas Foundation (FGV), throughGVAgro, Agribusiness Center,with the collaboration of ABAG and the participation of the main entities of the Brazilianagribusinesssector.

The full document is only available in Portuguese at http://grupogpps.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/FGV_ABAG-programa-governo-cadidatos.pdf

MacroeconomiccoordinationintheMERCOSUR:Thereisnonetoday.Willitexistsomeday?GuillermoRozennwurcel–July2014

Within the framework of a novel analysis, the primary purpose of this paper is to determinewhether the existing level of macroeconomic coordination is sufficient to progress towards agreaterdegreeof integrationwithinthetradebloc.Tothatend, it reviewsthe interdependenceamong theeconomiesofmember countries, the synchronizationof their economic cycles, theirmacroeconomic volatility and current integration. But the paper is not limited to this, it goesfurther: itmakesproposals anddefinesguidelines thatmakeupanagenda that could revitalizeMERCOSUR.Competitivenessandpotentialinternationalintegration,coupledwiththeworldwideneedtomovetowardsgreaterfoodsecurity,maketheagro-industrialsectorastrategicsectortopromotegreatereconomicconvergence.

Thefirstchapteranalyzesthetwomainsourcesofinterdependence:tradeandfinancialrelations.Inthefirstcase,itreviewstheevolutionofintraregionalexportsofMERCOSURcomparedwiththetotalexportsofthebloc,othertradeblocsandregionalGDP.Theresultsshow,ontheonehand,adecline in inter-regional exports, evenwithin an internationalmacroeconomic context thatwasfavorabletostrengthenglobal integration(Chinaeffect),andontheother,a lowweightofsuchexportsinthetotal,comparedtoothertradeblocs.Thefinancialchannelshowsthatinternationalfinancialconditionsaremovinginthesamedirectioninallmembercountries,andthattheeffectsof contagion in a given country rapidly spread to its other partners. There is thus nosynchronization in their economic cycles and no incentives for coordination thereof or forcooperation. Worth noting is the experience in other trade blocs that have tried to resolveasymmetryproblemsthroughthecreationofconvergencefunds.

The second chapter discusses exchange rate volatility in Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay in theperiodreviewed(1998-2013)asaresultofthedivergenceintheirmacroeconomicpolicies.Everyintegration process requires that the countries involved exhibit some progress in defining aminimum agenda for the gradual coordination of their exchange policies. The definition ofcommonstandardsforexchangeintervention,theharmonizationofregulationsconcerningcapitalflows and the adoption of some band mechanism for exchange rates within the bloc would

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promotethisprocess.Forthatreason,thecreationofaMERCOSURstabilizationfundisproposedandtheestablishmentofasub-regionaldevelopmentbank.

Anexplanation followsof thereasonswhytheagri-foodsectorpossesses thebestconditions toleadamovetowardsgreatermacroeconomiccoordination.

The fourth section defines the guidelines for a possible agenda for the revitalization ofMERCOSUR:a)establishmentofareasonabledeadlinetoremovetheexceptionstotheCommonExternalTariff(AECistheSpanishacronym)andbarrierstointra-regionaltrade;b)constructionofacommonstatisticalbaseanduseoftheFOCEM(MERCOSURConvergenceFund);c)other.

Thepaperendswithsomefinalcommentsacknowledgingthestagnationoftradeandtheabsenceof integrationandmacroeconomiccooperation.That iswhy thinkingofa revitalizedMERCOSURrequiresasetofactionsunderpinningaclearstrategy,withBrazilastheleaderofthisprocess.

Thefulldocumentisavailableathttp://grupogpps.org/en/publicaciones/coordinacion-macroeconomica-en-el-mercosur-hoy-no-existe-la-habra-algun-dia-a-cargo-de-guillermo-rozenwurcel/#more-1458

Trade and Investment Policies in ABPU: Towards flexible coordinationdemands.NorbertoPontiroliandPalomaOchoa–July2014

The combination of international and domestic factors (outlook for demand and supply ofagricultural goodsand services) represents a fabulousopportunity forABPU,whichholdshighlyconcessional terms to lead the growthof production and global export of agro-industrial goodsandservices.

To take advantage of these conditions it is necessary to first solve common challenges amongthesecountries(suchasincreasingproductionlevels,increasetheirshareofglobalincomeintheagribusiness chain and expand market access to "new rules"); at the same time they requireflexiblecoordinationintradeandinvestmentpolicies.

Inthiscontext,thepaperconsiderswhatshouldbethedesiredtypeofinternationalintegrationinworldagriculturalmarkets;therolethattradeandinvestmentpoliciesshouldhave,theobstaclesand limitations in this area, and the participation in international negotiations of ABPU’s agro-industrial sectors. All with the aim to recommending possible areas of flexible coordination,departingfrombusinessdemands.

In this regard, the paper recommends reducing tariffs and barriers to trade, the articulation ofjoint positions for eliminating distorting measures in agricultural trade, the promotion of a

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commonexternalagenda inproactivetermsofpromotionsandtradenegotiationsand"regionalpublicgoods".

Amongthemostsalientexogenousobstaclesthereare:thesubsidizingofagriculturalproductionandexports,thenewnon-tariffbarriersandthepotentialnew"rules"ofagriculturaltrade.Thesedrawbacks converge on the need for a common external agenda which is proactive towardsinternationalnegotiations.

The most important endogenous limitations are the barriers and restrictions to trade (exportduties, quotas, permits, etc.), regional macroeconomics (inflation processes), regulatoryframeworks for investmentandtrade,connectivitydeficits,andthe lackofsupportservicesandtradepromotion.

Furthermore, theauthorspromoteaproactiveapproachbyABPU towardsnegotiating foragro-industrialsectors,consideringthatthelackofpresenceofMERCOSURincommercialagreementsduringthepastdecadeintheAsia-Pacificregionand,morerecently,theFTA’sannouncementsfortranspacific and transatlantic initiatives-TPP and TTIP- translates into higher entry barriers ofagriculturalgoodstothosemarkets.

The paper alsomakes an overview of themain competitors in themost important products ofABPUandthedemandingmarkets.In4ofthe8productionsselected,Asia-Pacificrepresentsover50%ofworldimportsprojectedfor2021.

Finally, the paper concludes by listing 7 main areas that require coordination between ABPUcountries in pursuit of promoting a cooperative and jointwork agenda. These are: a) subsidies,environmentalmeasuresandprivatestandards,b)newrules,c)restrictionsandtradebarriers,d)investment regulations, e) connectivity deficits, f) support services and trade promotion, g) aproactiveagendaofinternationalnegotiations.

The full document is available at http://grupogpps.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Trade-and-investment-Policies-in-ABPU-Towardsflexible-coordination-demands-Pontiroli-Ochoa.pdf

OBrasilAcabou?*EvaristoEduardodeMiranda-July2014

Em25anos,oGovernofederalizouquase35%doterritórionacionaldestinando-oaunidadesdeconservação, terras indígenas, comunidades quilombolas e assentamentos de reforma agrária.Semplanejamentoestratégicoadequado,esseconjuntodeterritóriosresultouessencialmentedalógicaedapressãodediversosgrupossociaisepolíticos,nacionaiseinternacionais.Agora,opaísestádiantedeumdesafiodegestãoterritorial,geradordeconflitoscadavezmaisagudos.

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Alémdasáreasjáatribuídas,existemmilharesdesolicitaçõesadicionaisparacriarouampliarmaisunidadesdeconservação,terrasindígenas,assentamentosagráriosequilombolas.Cadavezmais,asnovas áreas reivindicadas já estãoocupadaspela agriculturae atépornúcleosurbanos. Essequadro complexo de ocupação e uso territorial representa um enorme desafio de governançafundiária e envolve conflitos graves, processos judiciais, impactos sociais e implicaçõeseconômicassignificativas.

Opaíscampeãodapreservaçãoterritorialexigequeosagricultoresassumamoônusdepreservarporções significativas no interior de seus imóveis rurais, como reserva legal ou áreas depreservaçãopermanente,numcrescendoquepodecomeçarcom20%echegara80%daáreadapropriedadenaAmazônia.Arepercussãodocrescimentodopreçodaterranocustodosalimentoséapenasumdosreflexosdessasituação.

Os pesquisadores brasileiros estão cientes de que somente sistemas de gestão territorialestratégicos poderão garantir a compreensão do potencial e dos limites da base de recursosnaturaisedosprocessosdeusoeocupaçãodasterras.Eajudarasuperaressegrandee inéditodesafiodeinteligênciaterritorial.Mas,sópesquisadornãobasta.

The full document is only available in Portuguese at http://grupogpps.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/O-BRASIL-ACABOU.pdf

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4. InternationalRelations,TradeandInvestment

MERCOSUR-UnitedKingdom:Analysisofcommercialintelligenceforthecaseofagro-industrialgoodsPabloElverdin.-December2017

The document analyzes the current bilateral relationship between MERCOSUR and the UnitedKingdom,bothfromacommercialandtariffpointofview.Theanalysis isfocusedontheUnitedKingdom'sexternaldemandforagro-industrialproducts.

ThecurrentstateofnegotiationsbetweentheUnitedKingdomandtheEuropeanUnion(Brexit),does not allow to advance with bilateral negotiations with Great Britain, which will only bepossibleoncetheprocessofseparationoftheEuropeancontinentalblociscompleted.

AlthoughtheUnitedKingdomhasindicateditsdesiretoreplicatethetradeagreementswiththirdcountries that it currently has in force through the European Union (which MERCOSUR is stillnegotiating),neitherthetimenortheprocessesinvolvedinsaidrestructuringareclear.However,presumably,other food-exporting countries,membersof theCommonwealth (suchasAustralia,Canada, New Zealand or South Africa), could have some commercial preference in the UnitedKingdom,aftertheBrexitended.

The commercial relevance of the United Kingdom (4th importer and 10th global merchandiseexporter) makes it necessary for MERCOSUR to establish a clear strategy in face of the newopportunitiesgeneratedbyEuropeannegotiation,whichrequirespayingattentiontothepotentialgainsorlossesofcommercialadvantagesintheBritishmarket.

The full document is only available in Spanish at https://grupogpps.org/web/mercosur-reino-unido-2-2/

MERCOSUR-Canada: Analysis of commercial intelligence before anegotiationofafreetradeagreement.Thecaseofagro-industrialgoodsIdígoras,G.;Papendieck,S.yElverdin,P.–September2017

Themainobjectiveofthisdocument istoanalyze,fromthetariffandcommercialpointofview,the current bilateral commercial relationship of MERCOSUR-Canada and its main competitors

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withintheuniverseofagroindustrialproductsandbioenergy,withthepurposeofevaluatingtheimpactofapossiblefreetradeagreementtradebetweentheparties.

Thepurposeof thedocument is tobea strategic tool forMERCOSUR inanyagribusiness tradenegotiationprocessthatbeginswithCanada.

The full document is only available in Spanish at https://www.grupogpps.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/1710-MCS-Canad%C3%A1-final-12-10-17.pdf

PacificAlliance-MERCOSUR:agro-industrialtradeandtradeagreementsRosarioCamposandRicardoCarciofi-January2017

One of the issues that have gained some attention in the region's trade policy agenda is thefeasibility of a closer rapprochement between MERCOSUR and the Pacific Alliance (PA). Thisinteresthasbeenmotivatedbypoliticalandeconomicreasons.Atthepoliticallevel,theintentionis to preserve a certain union within Latin America, which would eventually result in adisadvantage if a fracture between its Atlantic front and the Pacific countries were deepened.These voiceswere initially launched from the AP side, but have recently been accompanied bysimilarpositionswiththenewgovernmentsofBrazilandArgentina.

On the economic level, it has been envisaged that the deepening of the commercial andproductiverelationshipmayresult inan increase intradeflowsbetweenmembersofbothblocsandthusincreasethevolumesdirectedtoextra-zone.

Thispaper focusesonapartialaspectof thisbroaderagenda. Inparticular, itexamines trade inagroindustrial products between MERCOSUR and the PA and analyzes the network of tradeagreementsthatsupportstrade.Ultimately,theporpoiseistoexaminethepossibilitiesoffurtherproductive integration between the two blocs, and in particular to explore in which way thisprocesscouldbenefitfromtheextra-regionalmarketaccessalreadyavailabletoAP.

The fulldocument isonlyavailable inSpanishathttp://grupogpps.org/publicaciones/alianza-del-pacifico-mercosur-comercio-agroindustrial-y-los-acuerdos-comerciales/

Evaluation of current and potential agroindustrial trade betweenMERCOSURandthePacificAllianceEduardoBianchiandCarolinaSzpak–January2017

ThepaperanalyzescurrentandpotentialagroindustrialtradebetweentheMERCOSURcountriesand the countries of the Pacific Alliance. Based on trade figures for the period 2014-2015, a

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detaileddescriptionofagro-industrialexportsandimportsismade,withafocusonintraregionaltrade,tradebetweenthetwoblocs,themainpartnersandthemostimportantproducts.

Subsequently, the commercial opportunities of the MERCOSUR countries are identified andquantifiedinthePacificAllianceandviceversa,indicatingineachcasethecountriesandproductsinvolved.

The analysis shows the low significanceof the current agroindustrial tradebetweenbothblocs,leading to the conclusion that there is a wide margin for trade links between both regions toincreaseanddiversifyinthenearfuture.

The full document is only available in Spanish athttp://grupogpps.org/sin-categoria/evaluacion-del-comercio-agroindustrial-actual-y-potencial-entre-el-mercosur-y-la-alianza-del-pacifico/

Opportunities to relaunch MERCOSUR's international economicnegotiations:TowardsanaggressiveagendaofexternalrelationsSabinePapendieckandGustavoIdígoras-March2016

This research aimed to identify an agendaof international economic negotiations that promoteeffective access to markets of interest to MERCOSUR’s agroindustry. The current internationalcontext is characterized by a transition to multipolarism, where countries promote multipleeconomicnegotiationswithblocksandgroupsofcountriesindifferentpartsoftheworld.Infacttodaytherearemorethan60opentradenegotiationsandMERCOSURdoesnotparticipateinanyofthem.MERCOSURhasanexternalrelationshipagendathatisreducedincomparativetermsandlittleorientedtowardsthegenerationofemploymentandeconomicdevelopmentopportunities.The three countries with economic and political dialogue until 2015 were Jordan, Tunisia andLebanon.

The new agenda should be focused on limited priorities for the purpose of proving verifiablesuccesses in trade agreements. For that GPS offers some ideas to build this agenda ascontributionstothedebate.TheGPSproposalisbasedonpreconditionstoarticulatethisstrategyofnegotiations.Thesetradeagreementsmustreportpotentialeconomic,commercialandsocialbenefits.

The change of government in Argentina and the public statements of the new administrationinspiretothinkthattherewillbeanaggressivetradeagenda.BrazilhasgivenclearexpressionsofinterestinhavinganactiveagendainparticularwiththeEUandbothUruguayandParaguayarepubliclyencouragingtorecoverastrategyofinternationalinsertion.Inviewofthis,GPSconsidersit necessary to propose an open debate that encourages the adoption of an external relationsagendaofMERCOSURtobelaunchedin2016

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The full document is only available in Spanish at http://grupogpps.org/publicaciones/resumen-oportunidad-para-relanzar-las-negociaciones-economicas-internacionales-del-mercosur/

ExportmarketsforcurrentandfutureagroindustrialgoodsEduardoBianchiandCarolinaSzpak–December2015

Thepaper reviews current andpotentialmarkets for anumberof goods fromArgentina,Brazil,Paraguay andUruguay (ABPU). Using a chain of production approach, it examines ABPU agro-industrial exports for the period 2006-2013 and selects a set of 15 production chains that aresignificantintheregion.Italsodescribesthemake-upoftheindustriallinkofthechaininthefourcountries.

Theuseofthechainsofproductionmethodtoexaminepotentialmarketshastheadvantagethat,forthoseproductswithanexportpotential,itidentifiesthelinksthatwillalsobeaffectedbysucheffort.

Takingthatasastartingpoint,itexaminesexistingmarketsfortheselectedlinksorgoods,aswellasfutureorpotentialmarketsthataffordsignificantopportunitiestoincreasetheparticipationofABPUininternationalagro-industrialgoodsmarkets.

Theanalysisshowsthatdevelopingoremergingcountriesaremoredynamicandaccountformostoftheestimatedgrowthinfoodconsumptionandimports.

Specifically, thepaper identifies thecountriesofNorthAfrica, theMiddleEastandChinaas themost interesting ones because of their dynamic economic growth and population growth.However, in terms of imports already made, the potential market of the five North AfricancountriesandtheMiddleEastismuchgreaterthanthatofChina.

The full document is only available in Spanish at http://grupogpps.org/publicaciones/mercados-actuales-y-futuros-gps/

ProducingCountriesfromtheSouthernCone:BreakdownofandchangesinGDPandthetradebalancePabloElverdin–June2015

Thepaper summarizes somebasic featuresof theeconomiesof theABPUcountries, comparingtheirrecentevolutionwiththebehaviorofdevelopedcountriesandoftheworldasawhole.

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It is not intended to be a scholarly paper and its only purpose is to provide a document thatdescribestherecentbehaviorofthesefoureconomies,atlengthandincontext.

It begins by describing themain economic and population variables of the four countries and,wherepossible,providesaggregatedatafortheOECDcountriesandtheworld.Itshowstherecentchanges in GDP in these four Latin American economies -which have grown more than worldaverageandalsomorethantheOECDcountriesasawhole-,aswellasabreakdownbysector.

It then goeson to review the foreign tradeof the four countries in greater depth, showing thechangesintheirtradebalanceaswellasthebreakdownoftradeflowsandtheirmainpartners.

ItmaythusbeseenthattotalexportsofABPUcountrieshavegenerallyfollowedtheinternationaltrend,withsomepositivedifferences,albeitsmaller than inGDP.However,ArgentinaandBrazilgrewlessthanworldaveragestartingin2012,consistentlywiththeslowdownoftheireconomiesandthedropintheirtermsoftrade.

Thedatashowaclearandpersistenttrendtowardsexportsofprimarygoods,mainlyoilseedsandgrain, with little room for manufactured products with greater value. The appearance ofmanufactured automotive products is directly related to specific bilateral/regional agreementsrather than to actual competitive advantages of the sector. It is clear that there is greaterdiversification and greater added value in Brazil and Argentina than in the two lesser partners.However, Uruguay hasmanaged to include agro-industrial goodswith greater value in itsmainexports,whichundoubtedlystrengthenstheimportanceofitsagro-industrialsector.

The full document is only available in Spanish at http://grupogpps.org/publicaciones/paises-productores-del-sur-composicion-y-evolucion-del-pib-y-la-balanza-comercial/

Participation of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay andUruguay (ABPU) in theagro-food market and global governance: implications of “megaagreements”PabloElverdin–Aprilde2015

Thispapermakesabriefreviewofthebehaviorofglobaltradeinrecentyears,andoftheagro-food trade in particular, describing the share of ABPU countries in trade flows and theirparticipationinglobalgovernance.

Itwillshowthat,despitethefactthatthesefourSouthAmericancountrieshavebeenincreasingtheirshare(whichisstillsmall)inglobaltrade,andthattheircontributiontoglobalfoodsecurityisoutstanding, they have not yet achieved greater participation in the international governance(althoughBrazilhasmadesignificantprogress in this regard). It is clear that theparticipationof

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ABPUcountries insuchgovernancewillbemoreeffective if it ismade inacoordinated fashion,andtherefore,theymustworkonappropriatemechanismstoachievethis.

In addition, current foreign trade patterns and the negotiation of various regional “megaagreements”make it necessary to considerwhat couldhappen inABPU countries in thesenewscenarios. If such “mega agreements” are concluded, the position of ABPU countries withMERCOSUR(andasaresult,ofMERCOSURitself)andwiththeothercountriesandtradingblocsoftheglobecouldbedecisivefortheirparticipationattheinternationallevel,affectingthepotentialgrowthofoureconomiesintheyearstocome.

Recentstudiesshowthat,ifthoseagreementsarereached,ABPUcountrieswillsufferbothatthetrade level and at the level of GDP growth. The inaction in each casewill, no doubt, lead to arestriction in export markets and thus, to a restriction on the growth of the region. For thatreason, increasing coordination among ABPU countries, redefining goals and reviewingpossibilitiesofassociationwithothercountriesorstrategicblocs(measuringtheirimpactnotonlyin the tradeaspect,butalsoon theproductionand social structureof the respective countries)shouldbeatoppriority.

The full document is available at http://grupogpps.org/en/publicaciones/argentina-brasil-paraguay-y-uruguay-en-el-mercado-agroalimentario-mundial-y-gobernanza-global-la-implicancia-de-los-mega-acuerdos/#more-1680

Argentina’s Agricultural Policies, Trade and Sustainable DevelopmentObjectivesMarceloRegúnagaandAgustínTejedaRodriguez–March2015

The agro industrial sector presents a strategic importance for Argentina due to its significantimpactonGDP,employmentandterritorialdevelopment.Italsoconstitutesakeyelementinthecountry’sinternationalpositioning.

In thatcontext, thepaperanalyzes themain impactsof theagriculturalpolicies implemented inArgentinathelastdecade.Thestudydescribestheobjectivesofthepoliciesandtheinstrumentsusedinthatperiod,followedbyananalysisoftheirmainimpacts.

Under that structure, the authors argue that agricultural policies were a significant part of theimport substitution strategyprioritizedby thegovernment.This strategyassumes thatdomesticdemand, supplied by local production, should be the main source of the country´s social andeconomicgrowth,anddismissestheimportanceofexportsandtradeliberalizationtoimprovethecompetitivenessandperformanceoftheeconomyinthemediumandlongterm.

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On the basis of this strategy, the vision for the agricultural sector prioritized its roles as: i) aprovider of low-priced food; ii) an instrument for limiting inflation in food prices; and iii) asignificantsourceoftaxrevenues.Itdidnotprioritizeitsimportanceinnationaleconomicgrowth,increasedexports,jobcreationorthesocialandeconomicdevelopmentofthepoorestregionsofthecountrybasedongenuineproductionactivities.

The lessons learnedmake itpossible toaffirm thatArgentina´s sustainabledevelopmentand itscontributiontoglobalfoodsecuritycouldimprovethroughchangesinthevisionandobjectivesfortheagro-industrialsector.

The false dichotomybetween exporting and supplying the domesticmarketmust be discarded.The national provisions of food will be ensured, with lower prices than their internationalequivalents,ifthereareincentivestoincreasetheproductionandexportofallsectoralproductsinsignificantvolumes.

Furthermore,thecompetitivenessofthemanufacturingsectorsmustbebasedoninnovationandon their efficient integration into global value chains and not on low salaries, which requiredomesticfoodpriceslowerthanthoseineffectinothercountriesthatdonotprotectagriculture.

The general framework of the proposals is a development strategy that considers the threedimensionsofsustainability:economic,socialandenvironmental.Theyareasfollows:1)Contextof policies to promote growth in agro-industry; 2) Greater external integration; 3) Increasingproductivity and efficiency in the use of natural resources; 4) Improving health and qualitystandards though the institutional redesign and professionalization of SENASA and INAL; 5)Promote conservation of natural resources and Good Agricultural Practices (GAP); 6) Increaseinvestmentininfrastructureandtransportlogistics;7)Strengtheningsocialandsupportprogramsforruralcommunitiesandagro-industrialsmallandmediumsizeenterprises.

The full document is available at http://grupogpps.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/H_Argentinas-Agricltural-Policies-Trade-and-sustainable-development-objetives-M-Regunaga-A-Tejeda.pdf

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