Supporting agri-food environmental sustainability: a case study of the EU-Vietnam FTA

Abstract

The European Commission has called for its Free Trade Agreement (FTA) Trade and Sustainable Development (TSD) chapters to support higher environmental standards. Environmental commitments in TSD chapters are implemented through dialogue between stakeholders, often (but not always) tied to implementation of Multilateral Environmental Agreements. In this article, using a qualitative case study approach, we examine whether, and how, these commitments to dialogue interrelate with other drivers for high environmental standards in the agri-food area. Identifying the coffee value chain as a sector of economic and environmental importance in the EU-Vietnam FTA, we undertook literature review and expert interviews with key stakeholders in the EU and Vietnam. These stakeholders have increasingly embraced, and invested in, achieving environmental sustainability, but expressed concerns about ability to meet both private certification and regulatory environmental requirements, and were largely unaware of TSD chapter mechanisms promoting dialogue. Environmental requirements increasingly constitute market access barriers for exporters to the EU, revealing the need to re-envision TSD cooperative fora as mechanisms to support compliance and promote two-way communication on the impact of EU environmental requirements, including their relationship with private standards. Doing so would provide a more tangible link between TSD chapters and higher environmental standards.