Will the Inclusion of Voluntary Standards in Trade Agreements Lead to More Sustainable Trade?

This briefing from the International Institute for Sustainable Development examines the increasing trend of incorporating voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) into free trade agreements (FTAs) and provides recommendations to maximize their effectiveness in promoting sustainable global production and consumption.

• The integration of voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) into trade policy can serve as a complementary force to public regulations, while trade rules may simultaneously enhance the implementation and design of VSSs to promote sustainable trade on a global scale.
• To maximize the benefits of including VSSs in free trade agreements, the document recommends several actions: standardizing definitions, establishing enforcement mechanisms, supporting small-scale producers with compliance, creating tools to assess the credibility of VSSs, and establishing guidelines and minimum requirements for their use in trade policy.

APA

Sarmiento,, S. B. (2024). Will the Inclusion of Voluntary Standards in Trade Agreements Lead to More Sustainable Trade? International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/ssi-voluntary-standards-agreements-sustainable-trade

Chicago

Sarmiento,, Steffany Bermúdez,Florencia. Will the Inclusion of Voluntary Standards in Trade Agreements Lead to More Sustainable Trade? International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2024. https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/ssi-voluntary-standards-agreements-sustainable-trade.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Sarmiento, |first1=Steffany Bermúdez,Florencia |title=Will the Inclusion of Voluntary Standards in Trade Agreements Lead to More Sustainable Trade? |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=23 April 2024 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/ssi-voluntary-standards-agreements-sustainable-trade |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sarmiento2024will, author = {Sarmiento,, Steffany Bermúdez,Florencia}, title = {{Will the Inclusion of Voluntary Standards in Trade Agreements Lead to More Sustainable Trade?}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2024}, month = apr, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/brief/ssi-voluntary-standards-agreements-sustainable-trade}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }