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Blue Box refers to production limiting subsidies and considered therefore less trade-distorting. They are exempt from the reduction commitments under the WTO Agreement on Agriculture. Examples of Blue Box include certain payments to farmers where the farmers are required to limit production, government assistance programmes to promote agriculture and rural development in developing countries.

Also referred to as the “amber box with conditions” — conditions designed to reduce distortion. Any support that would normally be in the amber box, is placed in the blue box if the support also requires farmers to limit production.

At present there are no limits on spending on blue box subsidies. In the current negotiations, some countries want to keep the blue box as it is because they see it as a crucial means of moving away from distorting amber box subsidies without causing too much hardship. Others wanted to set limits or reduction commitments, some advocating moving these supports into the amber box.