Did the Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture Affect Trade Flows? An Empirical Investigation for Meat Commodities

The Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture (URAA) was designed to reduce trade barriers and temper domestic and export policies that affect trade flows in agricultural commodities. This paper employs a dynamic framework to estimate the effects of the URAA on trade flows, as measured by export volumes, of three meat commodities. The model controls for several important factors, including regional trade agreements, and finds that the URAA had mixed effects on meat exports. Several complicating factors and policy responses, including increasing use of non-negotiated trade barriers, smaller export subsidies and domestic support, and limited effectiveness of market access provisions, explain the mixed empirical results.