The Food Industry and Regional Trade Agreements

The book studies the regulation of the food and beverage industry (F&B) in and by all leading regional trade agreements (RTAs) in the world. It critically evaluates the institutions, rules, and dispute settlement processes used to regulate F&B in older RTAs, such as United States-Mexico-Canada USMCA, Southern Common Market Mercosur/Mercosul, European Union EU, and Europe-Asia Economic Union EAEU, and also focuses on rapidly evolving or more recently established RTAs, such as the African Continental Free Trade Area AfCFTA, Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership RCEP, and Association of Southeast Asian Nations ASEAN. It discusses specific examples of major F&B companies to see if they comply or purport to comply with three indicators of healthy food: front-of-pack labelling; environmental, social and governance ESG compliance and the UN Sustainable Development Goals; and the avoidance of highly processed food HPF. It advances specific proposals to companies and to consumers to help achieve the goal of healthy food. The book marshals a sophisticated legal perspective, detailed economic knowledge of major F&B multinational companies worldwide, and constructive and cutting-edge proposals to such companies about providing consumers with up-to-date information to enable them to choose healthy food.