The authors create a standards restrictiveness index
using newly available data on maximum residue levels
of pesticides for 61 importing countries. The paper
analyzes the impact that food safety standards have on
international trade of agricultural products. The findings
suggest that more restrictive standards are associated,
on average, with a lower probability of observing trade.
However, after controlling for sample selection and
the proportion of exporting firms in a gravity model,
the analysis finds that the effect of standards on trade
intensity is indistinguishable from zero. This is consistent