A very good article. I would also draw readers attention to the article in the Washington Post about the rorts involved in the farm insurance area in the U.S. to be found here. www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/01/AR2006070100962.html

It needs to be remembered that the real world villains are the europeans and their common agricultural policy. This policy has devastated agriculture throughout the world, particularly in the third world. A series of US governments have stated that their subsidies are only a response to the europeans, being designed to enable their farmers to be able to continue exporting food to the world, and that these subsidies would be abolished if the europeans abolished theirs. Hopefully the contradictions of the european policy will cause its collapse in the near future, enabling our farmers to get back into the european market and abolishing subsidy policies worldwide. This will resolve the anomaly with high calorie food.

i can't think of any reason why oz farmers feel they have a right to sell in america, if the americans don't want them to.

'uncle sam' isn't really your uncle, and if you can't make a living within your own country, why should others nurture you?

international trade must be voluntary, as all trade should be. french farmers are heavily subsidized, but that is a matter for the french. the yanks just use this as a figleaf to cover their own farm subsidies while simultaneouly demanding free trade for their manufacturing and services.

DEMOS,
I doubt farmers care very much where their produce is sold provided the best return is achieved. The problem with other countries subsidising Agriculture is that farmers in those countries are unprofitable without subsidy and this distorts supply and demand. Ag tariffs are the largest of any industry, with most others ie steel making at very low levels. It is about equitable treatment.

Incidently the US is our biggest farm export buyer, taking nearly 20% of our produce.

What of the use of corn as a bio fuel?
Corn syrip and calories will rise Ah the free market.
fluff