Food safety in international trade: the Spanish experience in Mediterranean products

International agricultural and food trade between developed and developing countries is increasing due to a worldwide liberalisation movement. Tariffs and technical barriers are decreasing and many exporters in developing countries are ready to supply developed markets. However, there are still non-tariff barriers. The objective of this paper is to analyse how some food safety and quality control measures may be overcome by developing countries through a benchmarking exercise. The identification of ‘best practice’ in operating firms may be useful to others. We describe the evolution of international trade, the situation at destination and origin markets through the international channel. It is important to identify the role of food safety and traceability in food international relations. A case study is presented with the analysis of the fresh food export supply in Spain.