Dacian Ciolos, European Commissioner for Agricultural and Rural Development, held a meeting with Agricultural minister Yoshimasa Hayashi on Monday, Nov. 11 during his visit to Tokyo, and pledged to cooperate with Japan to tackle food security issues under the Group of Twenty framework comprising major producers and consumers of food products.
Hayashi called on Ciolos to work together so that agricultural ministers of the G20 industrialized and emerging market economies can hold a meeting next year, saying that food security issues should be discussed firmly on a ministerial level.
Ciolos acknowledged the need to speed up global efforts to ensure food security, saying that he will cooperate with Japan in calling on Australia, next year’s chair country of the G20 meetings, to hold the ministerial meeting.
Ciolos also met with Akira Banzai, head of the Central Union of Agricultural Co-operatives (JA-Zenchu), the same day, to discuss trade issues.
In the meeting, Banzai said that in the past trade negotiations held under the World Trade Organization, Japan and European Union have shared the view that various forms of agriculture should be able to coexist. Considering such circumstances, Banzai said he is sure that EU and Japan can establish more realistic and well-balanced trade rules under the ongoing economic partnership agreement negotiations. The EPA negotiations were also mentioned in the meeting between Ciolos and Hayashi, although the details were not disclosed.
Referring to the resolutions by the agricultural committees of the upper and lower houses of the Diet which call for exempting key agricultural products from tariff elimination, Banzai said the resolutions should be kept not only in the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade talks but in any trade negotiations.
Ciolos responded that Japan’s sensitive agricultural products should be negotiated separately, but added that in order to do so, Japan should show that it is willing to liberalize markets on other products which do not need to be treated sensitively.
Concerning protection of geographical indications, which are signs used on goods that have specific geographical origins, Ciolos asked Japan to adopt strict standards.
Ciolos also met with heads of the agricultural committees of the upper and lower houses of the Diet.
(Nov. 12, 2013)