Trade impacts of external border measures under the European Union's plant health legislation

This article assesses whether the European Union's (EU's) plant health regulations have had an impact on imports. A dynamic modelling approach was applied, using a two-step generalized method of moments estimator for panel data, and covering an 8-year period (2013–2020). The estimated equation includes volumes of trade, economic drivers, the trading partner, and variables capturing categories of import requirements (phytosanitary certificates, exemptions, restrictions) with regards to external border measures for enhanced biosecurity. Results From the analysis we can conclude that the import regime and its recent changes have had a limited impact, if any, on trade flows of the affected products. The most significant impact is found for products classified as high-risk plants, while the extension of the phytosanitary certificate requirement to new products seems to have had negligible effects on trade. Conclusion Therefore, the plant protection regime for extra-EU trade seems to be not trade distorting while supplying a framework to enhance plant health in the EU.

BARREIRO HURLE Jesus;  GARCIA ALVAREZ-COQUE Jose Maria;  MARTINEZ-GOMEZ Victor;  MARTI-SELVA Maria Luisa; 

2024-02-08

JOHN WILEY & SONS LTD

JRC129705

1526-498X (online),   

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ps.7893,    https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC129705,   

10.1002/ps.7893 (online),