[1] These include, in the WTO definition of multifunctionality, environmental protection, landscape preservation, rural employment, and food security.
[6] However, removing agricultural supports is often cause for consternation among public officials, who may predict the loss of certain positive externalities of the policies already in place.
At the same time, officials may fear the implementation of new market protections in other countries which are trying to promote the production of such outputs of agriculture.
[7] In such cases, advocates for free trade, such as the OECD recommend that countries reduce as much as possible their agricultural protections and institute policies which specifically target the production of the positive non-commodity outputs.
The United States and the Cairns Group argue that support of multifunctionality should be specific, targeted, and provided in a non-trade distorting manner.