Issues No. 1. Import surges: What are they and how can they be identified?
The problems of assessing and measuring import surges are extensive because agricultural trade is subject to inherent variability owing to the effects of weather.
Other factors that contribute to variations in agricultural trade include policy changes, exchange rate variations and various other market shocks, including foreign direct investment and technological innovations. Short term domestic production shortfalls resulting from the vagaries of climate can result in a surge in imports, necessary to maintain consumer access to supplies at acceptable prices.
