Political Transfer and “Trading Up”?: Transatlantic Trade in Genetically Modified Food and U.S. Politics

Although there is a popular perception that trade liberalization undermines domestic regulation, under certain circumstances international trade can provide a catalyst for making domestic regulations more stringent. This article makes a case extending the applicability of the so-called trading-up th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:World politics 2003-07, Vol.55 (4), p.457-484
Main Author: Young, Alasdair R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biotechnology
Domestic policy
Drug regulation
Economic regulation
Economic relations
Europe
European Union
Food law
Food policy
Food safety
Genetic engineering
Genetically altered foods
Genetically modified foods
Globalization
Industrial regulation
International aspects
International economic relations
Political economy
Political science
Politics
Regulation
Trade liberalization
Trade regulations
Trade relations
Trading up
Transgenic plants
U.S.A
United States
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Summary:Although there is a popular perception that trade liberalization undermines domestic regulation, under certain circumstances international trade can provide a catalyst for making domestic regulations more stringent. This article makes a case extending the applicability of the so-called trading-up thesis by finding evidence of change within the United States in response to the transatlantic trade dispute over genetically modified food. In particular, it argues that political transfer—the transfer of political concern from one jurisdiction to political mobilization in another—can prompt policy change even in the absence of the adoption of foreign standards by domestic firms.
ISSN:0043-8871
1086-3338
DOI:10.1353/wp.2003.0026