Members review farm policies in first meeting under new Chair
Members respond to questions during peer review process
A total of 220 questions were raised by members concerning individual notifications as well as broader agricultural policy developments or specific implementation matters (SIMs). This peer review process allows members to address issues related to the implementation of commitments under the Agreement on Agriculture.
For the meeting, 55 questions on 48 SIMs were raised for review. Among these were 21 new items, primarily covering domestic support programmes as well as tariff and other non-tariff and regulatory measures affecting agricultural market access in several members, including Argentina, Canada, the European Union Indonesia, Panama, Paraguay, Thailand, the Philippines and the United States.
Questions covered new topics including US beef imports and the US Financial Assurance to Revitalize Markets (FARM) programme; the Philippines' swine repopulation programme; Paraguay's farm credit support and climatic insurance programmes; Indonesia's pre-shipment inspections for halal products; Panama's milk and dairy import quotas; and the EU's Food and Feed Safety Omnibus, among others.
The Chair welcomed that many members had provided written responses to the many questions in advance of the meeting using the Committee's digital platform, which allowed for deeper exchanges during the meeting. He also invited members to respond to the questions verbally from the floor, including those already addressed via the digital platform, leading to substantive replies and rebuttals on many of the issues.
The Chair also urged delegations to submit timely and complete notifications, stressing the critical importance of enhanced transparency as requested by members. In the same vein, the Chair urged members to submit timely replies to the questions they receive in the Committee, noting that several remained outstanding.
All questions submitted for the meeting are available in G/AG/W/261. All questions and replies received are available in the WTO's Agriculture Information Management System.
Discussions on export competition
Members held their annual dedicated discussions on export competition, as mandated by the 2015 Nairobi Decision on Export Competition. This was the first such exercise following the Committee's decision in late 2024 to streamline and consolidate the transparency and notification requirements for export competition into a single export competition notification, applicable from 2025 and now serving as the key agreed basis for transparency and members' deliberations under this pillar.
The Chair urged all members to make every effort to submit their notifications in a timely and complete manner.
Counter-notification on India's sugarcane market price support
The Committee considered a counter-notification (G/AG/W/262) by Australia concerning India's market price support (MPS) for sugarcane. This was the third counter-notification addressing India's MPS for sugar, stretching back to 2018.
Australia noted that India remains the world's second-largest sugar producer, accounting for approximately 18% of global sugar production between 2021 and 2025. Australia claimed that India's system of market price support has helped it maintain its position as a key global player in sugar production and trade. Relying on the approach and methodology of the WTO panel in the dispute case "India - measures concerning sugar and sugarcane", Australia calculated and consolidated MPS data for the period 2018-19 to 2024-25. It noted that India had substantially exceeded its 10% product-specific de minimis entitlement for sugar for at least the last 11 years.
India responded that similar communications had been submitted by Australia in November 2018 and that the same issues had been raised by Australia and the United States in May 2024. India reiterated its stance that the premises underlying the prior counter-notifications were incorrect, as sugarcane in India is purchased by private sugar mills, and not by the government or state agencies. India noted that it did not accept the panel's findings in the sugar dispute and had appealed them in 2021. It therefore did not consider those findings to be an appropriate basis for a counter-notification.
Members hear global farming briefing by FAO, history of negotiations
The FAO reported to the Committee on developments in agricultural markets and global food security. It noted that conflict remains the primary driver of acute food insecurity, while global economic stress, weather extremes, and increasing climate variability, including El Niño conditions, continue to compound vulnerabilities and deepen acute food insecurity globally.
The global food import bill reached a new high of more than USD 2 trillion in 2025, rising by almost 5% for least developed countries (LDCs), more than 6% for net food-importing developing countries, and more than 7% for sub-Saharan Africa. Weather-related shocks, exchange-rate movements, and uncertainties associated with shipping and logistical disruptions may add further pressure, the FAO added.
The WTO Secretariat presented members with updates on the preparation of its detailed background documentation on members' notifications and notification practices related to tariff rate quotas (TRQs), which, for this year, would additionally include information on applied tariffs for imports within and outside of quotas. It also informed members about the imminent release and upload of historical files on WTO Documents Online from the early years of WTO agriculture negotiations and pre-negotiations, which had not previously been available in digitized formats.
Next meeting
The next regular meeting of the Committee on Agriculture will be held on 24-26 November.
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