The TPP impacts several aspects of the economy, with vast consequences for food and agriculture..
President Obama and leaders from twelve nations signed the TPP in New Zealand last week. It will now be passed to Congress for final approval or refusal. If you haven’t taken a moment to familiarize yourself with the details of this treasonous ‘trade’ agreement, this might be your last chance. The dire ramifications that the Trans-Pacific Partnership holds for food safety, local farmers, and the environment cannot be ignored.
A powerful editorial by Alicia Harvie for farmaid.org lays out the most alarming aspects the TPP will have on family farmers and the food system:
1. A Nightmare For Food Safety
The TPP includes first-of-its-kind language allowing corporations to challenge U.S. food inspection protocols and decisions. Consumer advocates warn the TPP could quell efforts to keep out unsafe foods that don’t meet the same standards U.S. farmers and ranchers are required to meet.
2. Good For Meatpackers, Bad For Ranchers
Under the TPP, the origin of beef is wherever the animal is slaughtered. So if it’s grown in America, but slaughtered in Japan, it’s Japanese beef. That reduces U.S. ranchers to anonymous widgets in the global supply chain, and makes it impossible for us to know if we’re really supporting American farmers when we shop at the grocery store. The TPP will also weaken health and safety standards regarding meatpacking plant inspections, livestock diseases, and food safety protocols to facilitate imports from countries lacking the resources to meet the high standards U.S. ranchers must reach.
3. Bye, Bye Labels
TPP has the ability to undermine local, state and federal laws, including labeling laws that inform consumers. U.S. livestock growers are watching their hard-fought Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) come under attack from meatpackers through global trade agreements. Supported by the majority of farmers and eaters, COOL simply tells consumers which country their meat comes from. But this kind of transparency is now considered a trade barrier by free trade agreements and is under threat of repeal.
4. Undermining U.S. Sovereignty
The recent legal challenge brought by TransCanada seeking $15 billion in damages over the U.S. rejecting the Keystone Pipeline was brought under NAFTA provisions that allow corporations to challenge U.S. laws. The TPP includes the same pro-corporate provisions and extends them to another 9,000 foreign corporations.
5. Bye, Bye “Buy Local”
Programs like Buy American are attacked in free trade agreements as trade barriers because they give preference to local producers and economies rather than global supply chains. That could undo all the progress we’ve made in developing local and regional markets where eaters can use their food dollars to support farmers close to home.
6. Currency Manipulation
The TPP includes no enforceable language to address currency manipulation, a trick used by foreign governments to tilt the playing field in their favor. Countries can devalue their currency, reducing the cost of their goods to us and increasing the cost of our goods to them. This has the potential to completely erase any gains the TPP would supposedly bring to U.S. farmers.
At
a protest against the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) on March 30,
2014, an activist holds a sign which reads “Fascism is not economic
policy!” (Flickr / Peg Hunter)
Thanks for taking the time to read this article. If you found this information helpful, please share it with your friends and family. Your support in our endeavor of sharing free information would be much appreciated.
Follow us on Facebook to stay updated with what's going Viral in the Alternative News scene. https://www.facebook.com/ViralAlternativeNews
By
