A discussion paper from the International Food & Agricultural Trade Policy Council (IPC), authored by David Blandford and Timothy Josling, examines how the WTO's Green Box can best be utilized to meet the needs of both rich and poor countries.

The Green Box category of subsidies was formed during the Uruguay Round of multilateral negotiations as a category of permitted subsidies which are deemed to cause minimal trade distortion. Common Green Box subsidies include support to research and development (R&D) and environmental protection.

The paper (Should the Green Box be Modified?) focuses on three areas in particular that relate to the Green Box: issues that need to be addressed in modifying the Green Box; the changes already proposed in the Doha Round negotiations, and what additional modifications might improve the transparency and effectiveness of constraints on policies that fall under the Green Box; and finally the implications of changes in Green Box definitions for policies in the major developed countries, with particular reference to options currently under discussion for the U.S. 2007 Farm Bill.

In a related topic, the International Center for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) held a conference last month which explored Green Box subsidies and their impact on national public policy goals and sustainable development in both developing and developed countries. Documents related to that conference are available from the ICTSD website.