The UK must take the lead by placing an agreement for a sustainable solution to the food crisis and economy at the centre of the forthcoming G20 summit, according to a new report by ippr north (Institute for Public Policy Research North).
The UK will chair the summit, in London in April this year, and the report argues that in order to achieve global food security, greater harmonisation of efforts is needed as well as the full participation of countries who have become increasingly influential in either production, aid or investment such as China, India and Brazil.
ippr north says that the current food crisis has arisen despite an end to policy complacency over investment in agriculture and food production, and the varied proposals put forward by leading international agencies and the international policy community could lead to duplication of efforts and competing agendas.
The report, ‘Just desserts? Securing global food futures’ says this risks future food security, as not enough attention is being given to which food systems should be invested in. It says the race to increase production has resulted in the way food is distributed and accessed by the world’s population being overlooked.
According to the report, the UK has the opportunity to help co-ordinate international responses between countries and offer an effective way to tackle to food security rather than creating new global funds and partnerships that duplicate or conflict with existing programmes.
Dr Jane Midgleythe, author of the report, said: “Food security has yet again become a global phenomenon and a global problem. To tackle this continuing crisis requires efforts to support food production as well as improve the accessibility and affordability of food to all, this last aspect risks being overlooked by current global responses.
“A multilateral approach needs to be adopted that includes and addresses all countries and their respective needs both now and in the future. The political and economic map of food has and will continue to change. However, current systems and approaches fail to deal with investment made by emerging economies in low-income countries or good governance practices surrounding agricultural development and food security.
"More radical policy changes than those currently promoted by the international community are required if we are to stave off a much more serious crisis of food supply and prevent a breakdown in international trust, particularly between developed and developing countries.”
The report also recommends the UK initiates measures by the international community to improve risk management for producers and governments in the developing world, as part of greater infrastructure support investment commitments. The report also recommends addressing distribution and accessibility issues that fuel food insecurity, including land tenure for poor producers, enabling biotechnology and intellectual property rights
Midgleythe also believes the UK government must continue to push for reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and greater market focus by some of the most highly supported producers. The EC should lead and underpin commitments to reform and improve global production and trade, she said.
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