Big win for Australian farmers as subsidies go By Gareth Hutchens An historic breakthrough in global trade negotiations will see $15billion worth of agricultural export subsidies abolished around the world, boosting immediately the competitiveness of Australian farmers. 
The deal is being hailed as the "most significant outcome on agriculture" in the World Trade Organisation's 20-year history, and one that re- establishes the WTO as the preeminent global trade body.
Trade Minister Andrew Robb said the agreement was a "major win" for Australian farmers, who are already among the least subsidised in the world.
Welcoming the deal, the Australian Farmers Federation said it capped off a remarkable 12-18 month period in Australian trade history, and for Trade Minister Robb.
"We have had three bilateral agreements, the Trans-Pacific Partnership [yet to be ratified] and now a commitment to remove agricultural subsidies in a multilateral arena," National Farmers' Federation president Brent Finlay said.
"The burgeoning demand for premium Australian agricultural product coupled with these great advances in trade policy will help our sector grow and to contribute even more significantly to the national economy and greater society."
At a historic ministerial meeting in Kenya at the weekend, the WTO's 163 members agreed to abolish all government subsidies to farmers, saying subsidies have a distortionary effect in global need.
The deal will bring the immediate removal of farmer subsidies by developed members, with developing countries to follow by 2018.
Export subsidies will be phased out for commodities including sugar, beef, pork, lamb, dairy, wheat, rice, wine, fruit, vegetables, processed foods and cotton.
Australian farmers stand to be one of the biggest winners.
A report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in 2013 showed Australian farmers have the second-lowest government support in the OECD, behind New Zealand.
Australia's "producer support estimate", which measures the total subsidies farmers get from government as a percentage of farm revenue, is around 3 per cent. The OECD average is 19per cent.
An OECD report from 2011 found over the 2008-10 period, New Zealand had the lowest level of support at just 1 per cent of farm income, followed by Australia (3 per cent) and Chile (4 per cent).
The US (9 per cent), Israel and Mexico (12 per cent) and Canada (16 per cent) were also below the OECD average.
Support to farmers was relatively high in Korea (47 per cent), Iceland (48 per cent), Japan (49per cent), Switzerland (56 per cent) and Norway (60 per cent), itfound.
Mr Robb said export subsidies had threatened the livelihoods of Australian farmers for years and their abolition will "permanently remove a long-standing source of distortion in global agricultural markets".
Australia is a competitive net agricultural exporter, with around two- thirds of total production exported.
In 2012-13, agricultural exports accounted for 15.5 per cent of Australian merchandise exports.
In the 2014 calendar year, agricultural exports were worth $44.3 billion, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.