On March 7th, European Coordination Via Campesina and Nyéléni Europe
organised a public conference on food sovereignty called “More
Farmers, Better Food”, held to communicate to a large public and to European institutions the results
of the Nyéléni Europe Forum, held in Austria in August 2011.
While the 2007-08 food price crisis
has been a catalyst for important policy reforms, governments have yet to
address its underlying causes and enact deeper
structural reforms, leaving the world at risk of another devastating spike in
global food prices. A report bySophia Murphy and Timothy A. Wise.
The consolidation of transnational corporations has seen some shifting of the focus of power in global agricultural markets, away
from governments and supranational bodies towards agribusinesses. But the exercise of this power isn’t limitless
and can be constrained by policy, finds a report by the Oxford Farming Conference.
While the EU's Common Agricultural Policy persists with its central focus of fostering competitiveness and exports of European agribusiness, it will continue to undermine small-scale farming and create greater food insecurity in the global South, says a report by Transnational Institute et al.
Contrary to the claim of feeding the world, genetically engineered crops have failed to significantly increase yields. Most worrisome is the greatly increased use of synthetic chemicals, despite the promise that GMOs would reduce insecticide use, says the Global Citizens Report on the State of GMOs.
In the drive for global food security, policymakers are sidelining sustainable farming techniques in favour of dangerous quick-fix solutions. Governments and donors need to re-balance their current focus on intensive farming towards much greater support for agro-ecological approaches, says a report by Christian Aid.
The root cause of the global food crisis is to be found in a system designed to sustain corporate profits rather than meeting people’s needs. Governments should work to promote ‘food sovereignty’ through support for small-scale producers and local markets, says a report by War on Want.
