طراحی وب سایت

1. priorities for a forward-looking trade relationship with japan
1: what should be the objectives and priorities of the future eu- japan trade and economic relationship? how should the eu pursue these objectives? japan is the 4th most important export destination for eu food and drink products. in 2009 export value exceeded €3 billion, which is 8% of the total eu exports to japan, all sectors included. the rising openness of japanese consumers to non-traditional foods has increased the potential market for european products in japan. these opportunities cannot, however, be fully exploited due to existing high tariff protection and important discrepancies between the european and japanese regulatory systems. for ciaa, the objective for the future eu-japan relationship should be to increase the market share for eu food and drink products in japan. this requires the elimination of non-tariff barriers, quantitative restrictions and customs duties which still remain high for the agri-food products. a comprehensive free trade agreement would be an optimal solution to address all these issues. it would create also a long-term framework for regulatory cooperation and dispute settlement, and eventually increase the market share for eu products in japan.
2. eu-japan bilateral economic and regulatory dialogues
2: how could the effectiveness of regulatory and trade dialogue/cooperation between eu and japan be improved? the bilateral negotiations could add pressure and help progress the regulatory dialogues.
3: are there any priority sectors on which regulatory cooperation should focus?
if yes, please explain, including specific areas or issues to be addressed. tariffs remain the major trade barrier for eu food and drink exports to japan. nevertheless, non-tariff barriers also constitute an important hurdle to trade in foodstuffs. ciaa considers that the food and drink sector should, therefore, be considered as one of the priority areas for regulatory dialogues. one of the most urgent and crosscutting issue with japan for the eu food and drink sector is the authorisation of food additives. the possible ban of 80 substances that is currently being considered by the japanese authorities should be given the highest priority. other issues of high importance that require an intensified trade dialogue are pointed out in the ntms’ part of the questionnaire (4a).
3. tariffs and non tariff measures (ntms)
4a: are you concerned by regulatory hurdles in japan in your field of activity in japan?
if yes, how should the eu address these specific non tariff barriers with japan? regarding the non-tariff measures, ciaa generally supports the findings of the report commissioned by dg trade and published in november 2009 (‘assessment of barriers to trade and investment between the ue and japan’). most eu food and drink exporters do not experience significant problems which prevent them from exporting. however, the divergences in regulatory approaches generate an important extra cost that reduces the competitiveness of european products on the japanese market not only in comparison to local products but also in comparison to products from australasia and the us. the main areas that need to be addressed in bilateral relations are: approvals of food additives; mutual recognition of conformity assessment; sanitary restrictions (particularly for beef); diverging product specifications; nutritional and expiry date labelling; packaging requirements; administrative burdens; and quantitative restrictions (e.g. quotas and ‘simultaneous buy and sell system’ (sbs) – a tender system for some dairy products).
5: in your field of activity, how significant would the remaining barriers be, for instance those related to cultural preferences and behavioural patterns (for example long-term relationship in business) that cannot be easily changed by law on a scale of 1-10? the cultural preferences are evolving, creating new opportunities for the exports of european food and drink products to japan. their importance as a barrier to trade can be estimated as 5 on a 1-10 scale.
6: are you concerned by tariffs or measures of equivalent effect in your field of activity? if yes, how should the eu address these tariff barriers with japan? ciaa calls upon the european commission to seriously consider a free trade agreement covering agri-food products as the main option for future eu-japan trade relations. for eu food and drink products, unlike other manufactured goods, tariffs and quantitative restrictions are still the main obstacle for exports to japan. the potential positive impact of their elimination for the eu food and drink industry - the largest manufacturing sector in the eu with a turnover of €965 billion (12.9%) - should not be underestimated. it should be taken into account that the demand for some imported food products in japan is now growing as a result of declining domestic production and changing dietary habits. ciaa members have strong export interests both in terms of tariff levels and import quotas. better market access conditions should be sought via an fta in particular for all eu dairy and meat products, sugar confectionary, sweet biscuits, jams and chocolate. quotas with low tariffs for imports to the japanese market could be considered as a scaling-down solution, provided they are administered from brussels and are not linked to the historical trade levels (largely affected by the existing trade restrictive conditions). the tariff quotas negotiated should be freely available to all importers of eu products in japan and not carry any conditions such as the restrictions of free circulation within japan or the utilisation of equivalent quantities of domestically produced ingredients in the final product (in case of export of first-processing goods). attention should also be paid to japan’s use of the multilateral safeguard clause. applying this mechanism to some european products (e.g. pork meat) seriously affects their exports and should be limited by a bilateral arrangement. were an fta to be negotiated, it should include effective rules of origin to make sure the preferential access offered to japan benefits the japanese producers only.
4. mutual recognition agreement
8: should the scope of the agreement be extended to other sectors? ciaa would very much welcome negotiation of a mutual recognition agreement on technical standards relevant to foodstuffs and an equivalence agreement for the sps standards.
5. customs procedures, border enforcement and trade facilitation.
9: should the eu increase cooperation with japan with a view to further simplifying and accelerating customs procedures? if yes, what should be the eu priorities for the years to come? general border procedures (e.g. customs valuation, customs classification, customs clearance, rules of origin) and product-specific customs procedures (e.g. health inspections) impose costs and delays on food exporters. changing requirements and procedures make the japanese business environment more uncertain and should be prioritised in the years to come.
6. protection of intellectual property rights (ipr)
11: should the eu increase cooperation with japan with a view to improving the protection and enforcement of certain intellectual property rights? if yes, what should be the eu priorities for the years to come? ciaa would welcome negotiation of a bilateral arrangement establishing the legal protection for european geographical indications in japan.
12. sustainablility
21: in your field of activity, do you think that the employment situation in the eu could be affected, positively or negatively in the context of an enhanced eu-japan trade cooperation? the food and drink manufacturing industry is the europe’s biggest employer (4.4 million people, 13.5%). given the new export opportunities that the eu-japan trade cooperation, and a free trade agreement in particular, are expected to create, their impact on employment across europe could be very positive.
13. other issues
if there any other issues that are not mentioned in this questionnaire that you would like to address, please use the space below to set them out. ciaa believes that japan could be considered as a interesting country for further action within the eu promotion scheme for agri-food products that is run by dg agri. this could bring significant economic results in overcoming the cultural differences.