Making agriculture and food trade easier by removing or reducing trade barriers, such as tariffs and quotas, supports sustainable development, concludes a new project led by Corvinus University of Budapest.

The Trade4SD, i.e. Trade for Sustainable Development, project explored how international trade can support sustainable development goals. This included 13 partners from 10 countries, mainly in Europe, alongside Ghana and Vietnam.

The research project finds that trade liberalisation - making agri-food trade easier by removing or reducing barriers to trade - supports sustainable development. However, trade liberalisation does not automatically lead to sustainability. It must be paired with policies that ensure fair distribution of benefits, protect the environment, and help vulnerable groups, such as women and smallholders, participate in global markets.

For example, when import tariffs are lowered for sustainably certified coffee in Vietnam, this incentivises environmentally friendly production. It also increases incomes for smallholder farmers as they can more easily afford to enter EU markets.

In Ghana, liberalisation of the cocoa trade combined with voluntary sustainability standards has led to better labour conditions, gender inclusion, and reduced deforestation, if farmers are supported with training and infrastructure.

“Trade liberalisation can support sustainable development if it creates incentives for inclusive economic growth, environmentally responsible production, and better livelihoods, particularly in lower-income countries. However, the impact depends on the design of trade policies and the presence of complementary measures,” says project leader Attila Jámbor, head of the Institute for Sustainable Development at Corvinus University.

Although recommendations are primarily aimed at EU policymakers, they are also relevant for national governments as they shape their trade and agricultural policies.

Jámbor acknowledges that current US trade policies run counter to the aims of this project; “The US government is focused solely on promoting its interests, while our project is about trying to consider global ones. You can’t achieve sustainability without global cooperation. Trade is a tool, not a barrier.”

Project researchers worked with the European Commission, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and the World Trade Organisation.