WORLD TRADE WT/DS76/2
6October 1997
ORGANIZATION(97-4235)
Original: English
JAPAN -MEASURES AFFECTING AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS
Request fortheEstablishment ofaPanel bytheUnited States
Thefollowing communication, dated 3October 1997, from thePermanent Mission oftheUnited
States totheChairman oftheDispute Settlement Body, iscirculated attherequest ofthatdelegation.
_______________
Japan currently maintains aprohibition onimports ofagricultural products. Specifically, for
each agricultural product forwhich Japan requires quarantine treatment, Japan prohibits theimportation
ofeach variety ofthatproduct until thequarantine treatment hasbeen tested forthatvariety. Japan ’s
prohibition applies even though thetreatment hasproven effective with respect toother varieties of
thesame product. Therelevant citations toJapan ’simport prohibition include thePlant Protection
Law (Law No151) enacted 4May 1950, asamended, andthePlant Protection Law Enforcement
Regulation (Ministry ofAgriculture, Forestry andFisheries Ordinance No73)of30June 1950, as
amended.
Japan ’simport prohibition hasadversely affected exports ofU.S. agricultural products. Japan ’s
measures appear tobeinconsistent withtheobligations ofJapan under theAgreement ontheApplication
ofSanitary andPhytosanitary Measures, theGeneral Agreement onTariffs andTrade 1994, andthe
Agreement onAgriculture. Theprovisions ofthese agreements with which these measures appear
tobeinconsistent include, butarenotlimited to,thefollowing:
(1) Agreement ontheApplication ofSanitary andPhytosanitary Measures, Articles 2,
4,5,7and8;
(2) General Agreement onTariffs andTrade 1994, Article XI;
(3) Agreement onAgriculture, Article 4.
On7April 1997, theGovernment oftheUnited States requested consultations with Japan
regarding these measures pursuant toArticle 4oftheUnderstanding onRules andProcedures Governing
theSettlement ofDisputes (“DSU ”),Article 11oftheAgreement ontheApplication ofSanitary and
Phytosanitary Measures, Article XXIII oftheGeneral Agreement onTariffs andTrade 1994, and
Article 19oftheAgreement onAgriculture.
Consultations were held on5June 1997, buthave failed tosettle thedispute. Accordingly,
theUnited States respectfully requests theestablishment ofapanel with standard terms ofreference
assetoutinArticle 7oftheDSU.
TheUnited States further asks thatthisrequest fortheestablishment ofapanel beinscribed
ontheagenda ofthemeeting oftheDispute Settlement Body scheduled tobeheldon16October 1997.