Mad-Cow Disease and the Politics of International Economic Law: Implications from Korean Experience

Abstract

The health and food safety policy of every nation must be designed and implemented such that the goals of trade liberalization are balanced with the protection of health and food safety. However, problems arise because these mutually amicable paths of trade and health policies are occasionally thrown into disarray, as demonstrated by the recent beef struggles in Korea. This struggle demonstrates how badly a legitimate trade liberalization effort can be thrown into disarray if there is a lack of a consensus-building process in domestic politics. It also shows how deeply domestic politics may penetrate trade policies in situations in which there is an imbalance of power among interest groups. Serious and continuous procedural steps must be taken through active communication with the general public so that unnecessary political struggles induced by misinformation and consumer anxiety can he minimized. Without building consumer confidence in domestic politics, any international standards or scientific principles may only build a house of cards. To shape integrated trade and health policies in highly political environments, governments need to maintain a high-level health and food safety management system. Such a system, based on an overall balance of interest between domestic producers and consumers, should help stabilize their long-term trade relationship with the world.