WTO: German apples no better for the climate than imported apples

Trade - WTO: German apples no better for the climate than imported apples

According to studies by the World Trade Organization(WTO), an apple produced in Germany is not always more climate-friendly than an apple transported over 18,000 kilometers from New Zealand, for example. "There's a big misunderstanding here," says German WTO chief economist Ralph Ossa to the German Press Agency.

"Most people think that a regional product is necessarily good for the environment." This is not always true if the total CO2 emissions of a product are taken into account. "Apples from New Zealand in winter are greener than apples from Germany because the German apples have been in cold storage and that consumes energy," says Ossa.

Transport emissions only make up a relatively small proportion of a product's total emissions, said Ossa. In the case of food, this is ten percent on average. However, there are big differences in production emissions. "If a vegetable or fruit is in season in another country and not in ours, and it is either grown in a heated greenhouse or has been in cold storage here, then the production emissions of locally produced goods are often higher than in the other country," says Ossa. "So it's not at all true that importing is always bad."

Global CO2 tax

Global trade could play a role in reducing climate-damaging emissions, says Ossa. To achieve this, we need to trade differently, not less. "Trade can be an important driver of climate policy," he says. This would work via a global CO2 price, for example. This refers to a levy on emissions caused during production. According to a WTO simulation with a global CO2 tax of around 90 euros per tonne of CO2, emissions would fall. More than a third of the savings would be due to products being imported from countries that can produce them in a particularly green way.

So far, CO2 prices only exist regionally, for example in Europe. According to the German government's plans, the CO2 price in Germany is set to rise every year, reaching 45 euros per tonne in 2024. With a global tax, brown products - i.e. those with high emissions - would be more expensive and less traded, while green products would be cheaper, says Ossa. This would have the effect of making construction with wood cheaper than with concrete, for example. It would also change global trade: "Countries would increasingly specialize in products in which they can produce with relatively low emissions," says Ossa.

The WTO, which has 164 member countries, aims to promote sustainable global trade with low tariffs and uniform rules for the benefit of all. It is committed to a global CO2 price.

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1. The World Trade Organization (WTO) found that an apple from Germany might have higher CO2 emissions than one imported from New Zealand, contradicting common beliefs about local products and the environment.
2. According to the WHO's chief economist for Germany, Ralph Ossa, people often assume that regional products are better for the environment, but this isn't always the case when considering a product's total CO2 emissions.
3. Ossa explained that during winter, apples from New Zealand might have lower CO2 emissions due to the energy needed for cold storage in Germany.
4. The WTO suggests that global trade could contribute to reducing climate-harming emissions, requiring a shift in trading practices rather than a decrease in trade.
5. One proposed solution to reduce emissions is a global CO2 tax, which would levy emissions from production and incentivize green products produced in countries with lower emissions.
6. The German government plans to increase their CO2 price annually, reaching 45 euros per tonne in 2024, but a global tax could have a more significant impact on reducing brown products and incentivizing green alternatives.
7. The WTO, with 164 member countries, including Germany, Switzerland, and New Zealand, advocates for promoting sustainable global trade by reducing tariffs and establishing uniform rules with the aim of reducing CO2 emissions.

Source: www.stern.de