With increasingly globalised markets changing consumer preferences and the steady development
of technologies influencing food trade flows safety and quality concerns have triggered the
development of new forms of global (food) governance. Since its creation in 1995 the World
Trade Organization (WTO) has succeeded in providing a multilateral legal framework for the
development of regulatory practices through its multiple agreements. Similarly the continuing
importance of regional and bilateral trade agreements such as in the European Union and in
Switzerland has enhanced WTO's accomplishments through a comprehensive and dynamic set of
international rules and standards for trade. However the changing trends in the production and
distribution of food products have questioned the effectiveness of the regulatory status quo.
This book addresses the legal aspects of the current global architecture for food governance
particularly with regard to the role of international standards. In doing so this work
attempts at mapping the implications of domestic food measures in international trade law.
