Agriculture Law Commons^™

European Union Food Law Update, Nicole Coutrelis

Journal of Food Law & Policy

On March 31, 2006, the European Commission published Council Regulation (EC) No. 510/2006 On the Protection of Geographical Indications and Designations of Origin for Agricultural Products and Foodstuffs. This new regulation repealed Council Regulation (EEC) No. 2081/92 On the Protection of Geographical Indications and Designations of Origin for Agricultural Products and Foodstuffs mainly to bring Community law into conformity with the World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements and the findings of a recent WTO panel. Under the new Regulation, persons in third countries (non-European Union members) are entitled to address applications for the protection of geographic names and statements of objection …

United States Food Law Update, Michael Tingey Roberts, Margie Alsbrook

Journal of Food Law & Policy

This update summarizes some of the significant changes and developments in food law over the first half of 2006. Not every change in food law is included; instead, this update provides a starting point for scholars, practitioners, food industry members, and policymakers determined to understand the shaping of food law in modern society. Tracing the development of food law through these updates, which appear in each issue of the Journal of Food Law & Policy, also provides historical context for the development of significant food law issues over time. New developments in state law, while certainly important and deserving in …

Animal Identification And Traceability Under The Us National Animal Identification System, Margaret Rosso Grossman

Journal of Food Law & Policy

The identification of animals has a long history in the United States. Since the late nineteenth century, livestock producers have used brands to mark their animals. Ear tags and other marks now identify individual animals or animals from a specific producer, but not all livestock are identified to facilitate traceability.

'Beastly Bureaucracy' Animal Traceability, Identification And Labeling In Eu Law, Bernd M.J. Van Der Meulen, Annelies A. Freriks

Journal of Food Law & Policy

This contribution discusses animal traceability, identification and labeling requirements in European Union (EU) law. The requirements are lex specialis to more general requirements in EU food law. The aim is to set out this body of EU law and provide some understanding regarding its background. Along with the article by Margaret Rosso Grossman, it enables the reader to compare the EU system to the United States system.

Bormann Revisited: Using The Penn Central Test To Determine The Constitutionality Of Right-To-Farm Statutes, Jeffiy R. Gittins

BYU Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Problem Of Social Cost In A Genetically Modified Age, Paul J. Heald, James C. Smith

Scholarly Works

In Part I of this Article, we apply the Coase Theorem and its most useful corollary to the problem of pollen drift. We conclude that the liability of pollen polluters should be governed by balancing rules against nuisance law, to be applied on a case-by-case basis, rather than by a blanket liability or immunity rule. We also conclude that truly bystanding non-GMO farmers should have a viable defense to patent infringement because liability would result in the application of a reverse Pigovian tax that cannot be justified under accepted economic theory. Only a contextual approach can account for the wide …

A Complete Property Right Amendment, John H. Ryskamp

ExpressO

The trend of the eminent domain reform and "Kelo plus" initiatives is toward a comprehensive Constitutional property right incorporating the elements of level of review, nature of government action, and extent of compensation. This article contains a draft amendment which reflects these concerns.

Laplante V. Winkowitsch, 05-Ap-08 (Blkft. Tr. Ct. App., Oct. 10, 2006), Blackfeet Appellate Court

Court Decisions

In the Blackfeet Tribal Court of Appeals, the Court considering a dispute over the pasturing of cattle longer than the original contract terms. While the original two-month contract was in writing, both parties agree that a verbal contract, with terms, covered the next two months. Cattle was lost and Defendant countersued for the loss of cattle. On Appeal, the Court determined that the lower court judge should have recused himself because he briefly represented the plaintiff in this matter before becoming judge. The Findings of fact were not supported by substantial credible evidence, and the pro se plaintiff, who did …

Water Forum 2006, Susan Kelly

Publications

No abstract provided.

Silly Rabbit, Farm Subsidies Don't Help America, Thomas R. Poole

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

The Death Of The Doha Round. What Next For Services Trade?, Rafael Leal-Arcas

ExpressO

With the indefinite suspension of the WTO multilateral trade negotiations in July 2006 by WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy, the world trading system must now find ways and means to unblock what is perceived as a danger to the world order. This article analyzes the legal and policy implications of the currently fatal Doha Round for the two main developed WTO Members, i.e., the U.S. and the EC, and the most relevant developing countries of the WTO. The specific focus of attention will be mainly on services trade. Thoughts on alternative ways to move forward in the multilateral trading system are …

Un-Fair Trade As Friendly Fire: The Australia-Usa Free Trade Agreement, Benedict Sheehy

ExpressO

Trade, economists and trade theorists advise, is a mutually beneficial exercise. Among this group, a particular set of advocates, claim that “Free Trade” is in the interest of all parties. As will be demonstrated, Free Trade is not truly “free” but an exercise of foreign policy and the implementation of policies favouring wealthy corporate interest groups. Free Trade is controlled by wealthy nations who have stacked the rules in favour of themselves, and in particular their corporate interests, and against the poor producers in poor nations. This control is used contrary to fairness, economic and ecological logic. Fair trade, by …

Bond Repudiation, Tax Codes, The Appropriations Process And Restitution Post-Eminent Domain Reform, John H. Ryskamp

ExpressO

This brief comment suggests where the anti-eminent domain movement might be heading next.

A Modern Disaster: Agricultural Land, Urban Growth, And The Need For A Federally Organized Comprehensive Land Use Planning Model, Jess M. Krannich

ExpressO

No abstract provided.

Using Capture Theory And Chronology In Eminent Domain Proceedings, John H. Ryskamp

ExpressO

Capture theory--in which private purpose is substituted for government purpose--sheds light on a technique which is coming into greater use post-Kelo v. New London. That case affirmed that eminent domain use need only be rationally related to a legitimate government purpose. Capture theory focuses litigators' attention on "government purpose." That is a question of fact for the trier of fact. This article shows how to use civil discovery in order to show the Court that private purpose has been substituted for government purpose. If it has, the eminent domain use fails, because the use does not meet minimum scrutiny. This …

Caveat Venditor: Products Liability And Genetically Modified Foods, Kristopher A. Isham

Journal of Food Law & Policy

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have become a lightning rod for conflict between farmers, corporations, shareholders, government agencies, and other concerned groups. Supporters tout GMOs as a solution to the problems of diminishing returns from traditional crop plants and the rising demand for greater quantities of food. Opponents criticize GMOs for potential toxic and allergic reactions in humans, loss of biodiversity, and pesticide and antibiotic resistance in other plants and insects. As the understanding of potential applications of biotechnology broadens, the risks and benefits of such products are being scrutinized more closely.

Active Water Resource Management: Tools For Better Water Management, John D'Antonio

Publications

No abstract provided.

Water For Energy In The Southwest: Finding Water For Mohave, Stanley M. Pollack

Publications

No abstract provided.

Water For Energy In The Southwest: Where Will It Come From?, Marilyn C. O'Leary

Publications

No abstract provided.

Agricultural Biotechnology: Legal Liability From Comparative And International Law Perspectives, Drew L. Kershen, Stuart J. Smyth

ExpressO

Agricultural biotechnology has generated much discussion about possible legal liability for growing transgenic crops. In this article, the authors discuss how the legal regimes of four nations (Canada, Denmark, Germany, and the United States) would resolve various scenarios likely to raised liabilility issues. Building on this comparative discussion, the authors then discuss these likely scenarios as addressed in the on-going negotiations under the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety Article 27 (Liability and Redress). The authors end the article with recommendations about an appropriate legal liabilty regime at the international level.

Pollen Drift And The Bystanding Farmer: Harmonizing Patent Law And Common Law On The Technological Frontier, Paul J. Heald, James C. Smith

Popular Media

Patent law provides an impressive laundry list of defenses available to farmers who are the victims of unwanted pollen drift. The common law works hand-in-hand with patent law to ensure that a farmer’s choices are respected. Strong arguments can be made that positive economic relief should be afforded to farmers who can show the value of their crop has been diminished due to pollen drift. GMO pollen drift is a new, high-tech problem, but well-established principles of federal and state law appear prepared to offer viable low-tech solutions.

Safeguarding Organic Food: The Need For International Certification Standards, Balse Kornacki

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Cars And Homes In Chapter 13 After The 2005 Amendments To The Bankruptcy Code, David G. Carlson

Articles

No abstract provided.

The Right To Food: Holding Global Actors Accountable Under International Law, Smita Narula

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Economic globalization represents both an unmet opportunity and a significant challenge for the fulfillment of social and economic rights, including the right to food. While corporate sector accountability and the responsibility of international financial institutions (IFIs) to ensure social and economic rights are now at the forefront of the globalization discourse, greater attention must be paid to how these actors can be held accountable under international law. The existing human rights legal framework is ill-equipped to deal with violations committed by non-state actors, such as transnational corporations (TNCs), and multi-state actors, such as IFIs. Using the right to food as …

The Potential Impact Of Aboriginal Title On Aquaculture Policy, Diana Ginn

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

This chapter discusses the potential impact of aboriginal property rights on the development of aquaculture policy by considering whether such rights could provide a basis for First Nation peoples to participate in aquaculture or to manage the participation of others in this industry. The purpose of the chapter is to describe the relevant law as it now stands, to identify issues that have not yet been decided and to consider how the courts might approach such issues in the future.

The Taxation Of Aquaculture In Canada: A Comparison With The Taxation Of Agriculture And Its Policy Implications, Faye Woodman

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

In Canada, at both the federal and the provincial government levels, the tax rules applicable to agricultural producers under the Income Tax Act and other taxing statutes often apply with relatively few modifications to the aquaculture sector. The agriculture rules differ in significant aspects from those applied to other taxpayers. They also tend to be more generous. Thus, the aquaculture sector operates under regimes of taxation in Canada that may be characterized as preferential, but may also have been developed with the needs and circumstances of agriculture, not aquaculture, in mind. This chapter will examine the rationales underlying the various …

A Principled Approach To Property Rights In Canadian Aquaculture, Phillip Saunders, Richard Finn

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

The 1995 Federal Aquaculture Development Strategy summarized some of the difficulties facing aquaculture development in a federal state such as Canada, where the jurisdictional entitlements relevant to this “new” (or at least newly significant) industry are by no means clear:

Aquaculture is a formidable policy challenge. As a new industry, it straddles the line between fishing and farming, cuts across significant regional differences and is placed in a context involving the participation of municipal, provincial/territorial and federal governments.

Safe Air For Everyone V. Meyer: Weeding Through The Resource Conservation And Recovery Act's Definition Of Solid Waste, Katherine E. Senior

Villanova Environmental Law Journal (1991 - )

No abstract provided.

A Growing Controversy: Genetic Engineering In Agriculture, Holly Beth Frompovicz

Villanova Environmental Law Journal (1991 - )

No abstract provided.

Markets, Monocultures, And Malnutrition: Agricultural Trade Policy Through An Environmental Justice Lens, Carmen Gonzalez

Faculty Articles

Much of the literature on environmental justice struggles in the United States and in the Global South has highlighted the disproportionate concentration of environmental hazards in poor communities and communities of color. However, it is equally important to evaluate how human societies distribute access to environmental necessities, such as food and water. Food is a quintessential environmental necessity that is critical human survival, and the right to food is recognized under a variety of international human rights law instruments. This article examines the complex ways in which the rules governing international trade in agricultural products affect the fundamental human right …