Farmers are ready to meet the challenge posed by rapidly rising demand for food worldwide, but governments must give agriculture top priority if the world population’s “right to food” is to be delivered - that was the message to world leaders on today’s World Food Day.
According to the International Federation of Agricultural Producers, every person ought to be able to expect enough nutritionally adequate and culturally acceptable food to meet their needs by 2015.
And in a statement backed by the NFU, national governments are encouraged to give the world’s farmers the economic resources they need as well as promoting the development of all rural communities to help in the fight against hunger and poverty.
NFU president Peter Kendall said: “The underlying world food situation is changing from surplus to shortage, thanks to a combination of rapidly increasing demand on the one hand, and the impacts of climate change on productive capacity on the other.
“That gives World Food Day greater significance than for many years. As a member of the International Federation of Agricultural Producers the NFU is delighted to be able to support its message to the world’s political leaders, that, although the challenge is huge, if they give us the means and the encouragement, we’ll deliver the goods.”
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