New governance: can user-promulgated certification schemes provide safer, higher quality food?

Abstract

This article explores whether private regulation of food safety may fill in the gaps of statutory food reforms such as the Food Modernization Safety Act. The relatively new economic school of thought labeled "New Governance" centers around non-state actors acting not just as the object of but also as the creators of the norms regulating their own behavior. This regime may not only enable more efficient food safety regulations in the domestic setting, but also in the international context, as cooperation between non-state actors may overcome the traditional frictions between nations regarding regulatory schemes. It seems, therefore, as one example of "New Governance" rules, that third-party certification schemes may indeed play a vital and successful role in achieving a higher level of quality and safety for foods imported into the United States.