GD/111

European Economic Community - Imports of Beef from Canada

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Other titles

EEC Import of Beef (Source: GATT Analytical Index)

Parties

Complainant
Canada
Respondent
EEC
EEC-9
Third Parties

Products at Issue

Products at issue
Beef
Type of product
Agricultural
Product sub-type
Meat products

Related disputes

GATT
WTO

Key legal aspects

Legal basis
  • GATT Article XXIII:1
Claims raised
  • GATT Article I
Defences raised
  • n.a.

Adjudicators

Type Panel
Chairperson K. Berger (Norway)
Other members C.A. Rego Santos-Neves (Brazil), Elvezio Contestabile (Switzerland)

Report

Type Panel
Legal basis at issue
  • GATT Article XXIII:1
Claims at issue
  • GATT Article I
  • GATT Article II:1
Defences at issue
  • Tokyo Declaration, Par 5
No of Pages (total / legal reasoning) 8
  • -
  • Inconsistency found
  • Inconsistency found
  • Defence found to be inapplicable

Timeline

Request for consultations
Request for establishment
Establishment
Composition
Report
Adoption of report

Outcome

Outcome of the proceedings
Report adopted
Additional Info L/5099 (23/01/1981) European Economic Community - Imports of Beef from Canada - Recourse to Article XXIII:2 by Canada - Report by the Panel: The matter concerned a challenge by Canada to the EEC regulations pertaining to the implementation of the levy free tariff quota for 10,000 tons of fresh, chilled or frozen high-quality grain fed beef. In Canada's opinion, the exclusion of Canadian beef grades A2, A3 and A4 from Article 1(1)(d) of Commission Regulation (EEC) No. 2972/79 was inconsistent with Article I:1 and the manner in which the quota was implemented was inconsistent with Article II:1(a), since beef from the US was permitted entry while the same quality of beef from Canada was not. The Panel concluded that Regulation No. 2972/79 had the effect of preventing access of "like products" from other origin than the United States, thus being inconsistent with the most-favoured-nation principle in Article I. This was because exports of like products of other origin than that of US were in effect denied access to the EEC market considering that the only certifying agency authorized to certify the meat described in Article 1(1)(d), listed in Annex II of the Regulation, was a US agency mandated to certify only meat from the US. The Panel also that the manner in which the EEC concession on high quality beef was implemented accorded less favourable treatment to Canada than that provided for in the relevant EEC Schedule, thus being inconsistent with the provisions of Article II:1.