ABSTRACT
Not for the first time agricultural trade has become a live and contentious issue in Atlantic relations. Questions of access and of protection have been subjects of constant concern to American farmers and traders since the establishment of Europe's Common Agricultural Policy. Now, though, under the pressures of surplus stocks of grain, and falling farm incomes, there is a new area of contention - competitive subsidies designed to win or secure shares in an erratic world market. Months of negotiation have failed to resolve the issue and neither the European Community nor the United States has shown any sign of being ready to sacrifice what both define as legitimate economic interests.
