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International trade can play a major role in the promotion of economic
development and the alleviation of poverty. This is the reason for the
establishment of a multilateral framework of rules and disciplines to guide
the development, adoption and enforcement of sanitary and phytosanitary
measures in order to minimize their negative effects on trade.
On the other hand, sanitary and phytosanitary measures may
result in restrictions on international trade. All governments accept the
fact that some trade restrictions may be necessary to ensure food safety and
animal and plant health protection. However, governments are sometimes
pressured to go beyond what is needed for health protection and to use
sanitary and phytosanitary restrictions to shield domestic producers from
economic competition.
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