The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy

02/12/2025

Major meat and dairy companies have largely escaped scrutiny for their climate impacts — but that may be changing. Our latest article from Leila Yow investigates which meat & dairy giants are impacted by new corporate climate disclosure rules, and features interactive graphs exploring which rules apply to which companies around the world.

Mandatory corporate climate-related disclosure is gaining momentum. In this article, we investigate the effect of global climate-related disclosure rules on 15 major meat and dairy companies.

02/12/2025

While the Trump Administration wreaks havoc on international trade, a USMCA trade dispute panel recently ruled against Mexico’s measures restricting GM white corn. In a new detailed analysis of the panel’s decision, policy analyst Sharon Anglin Treat unpacks the ruling and how it undermines Mexico's plan to transform its food system & strengthen the country’s food sovereignty.

Mexico’s bold plan to transform its food system toward healthier, more sustainably produced foods that support rural livelihoods and respect the country’s cultural heritage is an essential example of food sovereignty. That expression of sovereignty ran headlong into the rules in the U.S.-Mexico-...

01/29/2025

NEW: Global agri-food companies are aiming to address emissions within their supply chains with new strategies including “insetting.” Our latest report digs into this new term and examines 18 major companies to analyze the credibility of their climate plans.

In 2024, the planet’s average temperature climbed to more than 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels for the first time. Our food system is massively impacted by the climate crisis.

01/23/2025

Looking for an accurate and reliable source of analysis on food, farm, environment and trade issues? Sign up for IATP’s newsletter to stay connected to all of our latest publications, news and events! https://iatp.us5.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=26fee7f7d268bc1c653da5892&id=3f024f9ff8

01/22/2025

With President Trump threatening to implement broad tariffs, it is important to understand what tariffs are and how they work. This updated FAQ explains how tariffs typically operate, and the dangerous uncertainties involved in upending trade relationships.

Tariffs have been in the news a lot lately. This FAQ explains what tariffs are and how they can be used as a tool in trade policy, or disrupt economies and international relations when misused.

01/21/2025

"The costs of climate change are rising with each drought, heatwave, hurricane and extreme storm. Trump’s decision to reject global efforts to address climate change hurts farmers and farmworkers in the U.S. and around the world."

Read our statement on President Trump's decision to again withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement:

MINNEAPOLIS/WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Donald Trump’s decision to remove the U.S. from the Paris Climate Agreement once again is a blow to farmers and rural communities already battling with increasingly extreme weather linked to climate change, said the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Pol...

01/16/2025

We are ! We are seeking an experienced media & communications professional who is passionate about just & sustainable food systems to join our team in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Please share widely and apply by January 31! https://www.iatp.org/about/jobs-and-internships/media-and-communications-manager

01/14/2025

Ahead of Senate confirmation hearings for nominated Trump Administration Cabinet appointees, we are raising pointed questions regarding how the nominees will address major challenges in our food & ag systems. Next up: USDA nominee Brooke Rollins.

The food and farm system is vast, complex and global. The United States occupies an important role in the global food system, both as a nation of consumers and one of vast food and fiber production.

01/08/2025

With Senate confirmation hearings expected to begin next week for Trump administration nominees to head government agencies, we are releasing a series of articles asking pointed questions about how nominees plan to address some of the urgent challenges facing our environment and food & agriculture systems. First up: nominated EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin.

The incoming Trump Administration has moved quickly on nominees to administer most government agencies.

12/21/2024

In a decision released late Friday afternoon, a USMCA dispute panel ruled against Mexico’s policy banning GM white corn for human consumption. The decision ignored substantial scientific evidence on health and environmental risks, sidestepped threats to Indigenous Rights, and inappropriately anticipated economic harm to U.S. corn exporters when no harm has occurred. Civil society groups in Mexico, the U.S. & Canada, including IATP, condemned the ruling.

“The USMCA was hailed as a new kind of trade agreement, taking some steps forward on issues like labor rights and investment. This dispute shows how far we still need to go. Mexico has every right to try to transform its food system to better feed its people and enhance rural livelihoods and biodiversity. The U.S. was wrong to challenge that initiative, and the panel is wrong to back them up.” - Karen Hansen-Kuhn, IATP's Director of Trade & International Strategies

Read our full press release here:

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Civil society groups in the U.S., Mexico and Canada criticized a decision today announced by a dispute panel set up under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

12/17/2024

There are a number of ways that CAFOs become rooted in our communities, and this tilt toward "renewable" natural gas (RNG) is another example. A prime example of greenwashing, using anaerobic digesters to convert methane captured from manure lagoons into natural gas attempts to paint industrial livestock production with a climate-friendly brush.
Not only does this entrench the CAFO-model of ag but also paves the way for corporations to trade RNG certificates to lower their emissions, or at least give the appearance of doing so. And of course, this trading fuels the money stream for this process because converting methane to natural gas has never been economically viable before. This is yet another example of a false climate solution.
Take a few minutes to read this piece from The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy https://www.iatp.org/bad-climate-policy-factory-farms

12/09/2024

Sophia Murphy (IATP) joins the National Committee to discuss how the United States and China shape the future of global food security.