Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP10853
Authors: Paola Conconi; Tania Voon
Abstract: The dispute in EC ? Seal Products raises fundamental questions about the relationship between public morals and international trade. Can WTO members impose trade restrictions based on moral or ethical concerns? Under what conditions can these concerns trump existing trade liberalization commitments? The dispute was filed in 2009 by Canada and Norway against the EU, which in the same year had banned seal products from being imported and placed on its market. According to the EU, the policy was introduced in response to European moral outrage at the inhumane killing of seals. The EU seal regime included a series of exceptions. In particular, it allowed imports of seal products hunted by Inuit or other indigenous communities, as well as imports of seal products processed and re-exported by EU producers. This article discusses the Appellate Body?s ruling in EC ? Seal Products and some of the key legal and economic issues raised by this dispute.
Keywords: moral concerns; protection; trade disputes
JEL Codes: F13
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Moral outrage (A13) | EU's trade restrictions on seal products (F13) |
| Public moral sentiment (A13) | Legislative action (K16) |
| Exceptions for indigenous hunts (Q26) | Mitigation of adverse impact on specific communities (R23) |
| Exceptions (Y60) | Trade diversion (F14) |
| EU's import ban on seal products (F18) | Decline in imports from certain countries (F14) |
| EU's import ban on seal products (F18) | Increase in exports of processed seal products from the EU (F10) |