Food+Security

=Food Security= toc =Overview = T he World Food Summit of 1996 defined food security as existing "when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active life”. Essentially food security can be defined as incorporating both the economic and physical access of food to meet a persons base dietary needs as well as their personal food preferences. It is common in many countries for health problems related to dietary access are an ever increasing threat.

The major issue faced by global food security is ensuring it is maintained and controlled as the planets population continues to grow at an exponential rate. =Points = 1. Food security problems are not new, and actually have shaped world history. 2. Food security solutions must take into account the local cultural, legal and economic practices. Policy decisions relating to food security must be formulated together with the local stake holders, and not benevolently, but often mistakenly, imposed. Macro-economic factors can trump issues such as production so that hunger results not from a lack of production, but rather a lack of supply. 3.Research and development in plant genetics must begin today. The economic models presented by Prof. Phil Pardey showed quite clearly that money invested into basic R&D in plant genetics provides a massive return, but this is only felt decades forward. Adoption of new technologies, such as in the past hybrid corn, or now GMO crops, usually takes about 15 years once marketing begins. 4.GMO technology must be improved and adopted by the world. Prof. Wilhelm Gruissem clearly stated that the adoption of GMO crops may be considered a moral imperative, as the gains, such as reduced pesticides, reduced water contamination and increased yields, greatly outstrip any perceived danger

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=Videos= A video providing insight to one of the most food insecure areas in the world, Africa. media type="youtube" key="JZ3dBZ0BsKs" height="315" width="560" align="center"

Some insight into the Middle Easts wheat industry

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=Gallery= media type="flickr" key="77613314@N05" ARG0="&lang=en-us&format=rss_200" width="500" height="500" align="center"

=Overreaching question = Is Globalization of food markets good or bad? =Essential Questions = 1. Is Globalization displacing small poor farmers in most countries due to comercialization of food? <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">2. Are <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Globalized food systems and the spread of Western lifestyles spawning an international public health disaster? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">3. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; font-family: 'lucida grande',helvetica,arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;">Is food self-sufficiency a good thing or a bad thing? <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; font-family: 'lucida grande',helvetica,arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; text-align: left;">4. Is food security and globalization creating a worldwide food crisis?

** Advocates ** Subcommadante Marcos of the zapista Army of National Liberation, a strong advocate against globalization

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #181818; display: block; font-family: georgia,serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left;">“There once was a brown horse that was brown like a bean, and he lived in the home of a very poor farmer. And the poor farmer had a very poor wife, and they had a very thin chicken and a lame little pig. And so, one day the very poor farmer s wife said: We have nothing more to eat because we are very poor, so we must eat the very thin chicken. So they killed the very thin chicken and made a thin soup and ate it. And so, for a while, they were fine; but the hunger returned and the very poor farmer told his very poor wife: We have nothing more to eat because we are so poor, so we must eat the lame little pig. And so the lame little pig s turn came and they killed it and they made a lame soup and ate it. And then it was the beanbrown horse s turn. But the bean-brown horse did not wait for the story to end; it just ran away and went to another story" <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #666600; display: block; font-family: georgia,serif; font-size: 14px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">[|Subcomandante Insurgente Marcos] media type="youtube" key="5OTy3aLBSMw" height="315" width="420" align="center"

media type="googlemap" key="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Chiapas,+Mexico&aq=0&oq=chiapas&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=42.224734,79.013672&t=h&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Chiapas,+Mexico&z=8&ll=16.756932,-93.129235&output=embed" width="425" height="350" align="center"

A map of the Chiapas region, home of the Zapatista rebellion

[] <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #000000; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 16px;">Joseph Mutumba, Food Security Program Manager in Southern Sudan, answers questions about the effort to provide seeds, tools and training to vulnerable people in Sudan.

=Maps=

Other various food security maps: [] [] [] []

=Position Papers= Pro Intro Globalization of food security is the best way to ensure healthy and tasty foods. Some people might say that the globalization of food security is putting small farmers in third world countries out of a job, making it harder for them to make a living. While this might be the case in some situations, it is for the greater good of humanity. The globalization of food security can hand the world the healthiest of foods by federal governments regulating what people eat. Having an international health disaster is almost impossible due to the world’s federal government’s regulations and laws. The federal governments can 100% guarantee that the people of this world will only get the healthiest foods due to globalization of food security. Also, the spread of western lifestyles is a good thing for this world encouraging, democracy, modern food sources, and the acceptance of globalization of food security. Moving on, food self-sufficiency is a very good thing. Countries from time to time will need to depend on their own food production due to occasional natural disasters or other issues. If there was no food self-sufficiency, there would probably be no global food security. Finally, some people may say that the globalization is creating an international food crisis. However, this is completely untrue. It is quite the contrary actually. As of right now, the globalization of food security is the best thing that can happen to this world, allowing every country to get safe and healthy food.

To start off, we will look at the question of: Is Globalization displacing small poor farmers in most countries due to commercialization of food? To be honest in some cases, yes it is displacing small time farmers, but it is for the greater good. If you look at the big picture, you would understand that, in lower income countries, it would be a necessary loss to make a few poor farmers lose their jobs; to make sure the rest of the country has healthy food that will make the population healthy and survive. A quote to back this up would be: “Things always get worse before they get better.” Farmers are going to lose their jobs and it will seem like all hope is lost, but in the long run, the whole country will get the food they need to bail them out of the food insecurity jam they are in.

Second, we move to the thought of Globalized food systems and the spread of Western lifestyles and if they are spawning international health disasters. The answer would have to be no. if you take a look at the Western most countries; they are all doing well for themselves, and are near perfection when it comes to food security. If the lifestyles of these successful countries was to spread to the eastern low income countries, I can’t see a reason how that would be a bad thing. If there ways start to take over how the eastern countries run themselves, they would slowly begin to get out of the rut there in and start becoming food secure, because if you do the exact same thing as someone or something successful, chances are, the imitator would be successful too.

Third question: is food self-sufficiency a good thing or a bad thing? This question seems like a no brainier does it not? Obviously food self-sufficiency is essentially a good thing. Countries, especially low income and poor countries can’t rely on other countries to bail them out of jams and help them out whenever they need it. They need to learn to be independent, and to be able to help them self’s when necessary, just like a human being, just like parents are supposed to teach their children. In a world as cruel as this one, it is a necessity to be self-sufficient, in more than just food security.

Lastly, is globalization of food security causing a world wide food crisis? No, its not. The globalization of food security is the key to ending hunger in the world. If the people and the governments of this world can accept the globalization of food security then we can all say good bye to hunger and starvation. If the globalization of food security is to take place than the world would no longer see people in third world countries suffering. Globalizing food security would allow the worlds governments to distribute healthy and tasty food to everyone on this planet. I believe that if the world does not accept the globalization of food security, then we as humans will be putting our progression as a species to a halt. Globalizing food security will be the best thing that humans would have ever done.

Demands of the Zapatista National Liberation army in regard to globalized food markets'
intro Globalisation and food security may seem like two things that would go great together, the creation of worldwide markets to import and export foods may seem like a good thing but it is a lie. Countries that depended on small scale farmers had much better crops output and less food imports then those who decided to go with supposed super farms. The truth is that super farms are actually marginally less productive and cost efficient then their lesser copies. Currently all nations who have succumbed to globalized food trade have had severe drops in food production and steep increases in importation of food. This is not good, nations are spending more money to get food then they wold to just produce it on their own. This globalization is also displacing small farmers world wide to make room for super farms. This is creating even larger hunger issues with poor populations and is eradicating the best way for the poor to get food. These super farms as mentioned don’t make up for their cost contrary to how their advertised. This is also creating a world food market where corporations arre deciding what people are eating and what to market. And one of the best selling forms of food is unhealthy food high in saturated fats. These fatty foods are being marketed at populations worldwide and are slowly replacing previous healthy foods that nations depended on. Thus the world is also becoming unfit and unhealthy due to the globalization of the food market. All of these factors in conjunction are creating what many experts are calling a worldwide food crisis. The worlds nations are producing less food and importing more, their unproductive superfarms are displacing poor farmers and they are creating worldwide unfitness.

displacement of farmers <span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Since globalization has begun, it has caused the displacement of small farmers. Many of these small farmers are losing their jobs and land to large companies who run super farms. Many countries are getting rid of these small farmers because they do not view them as efficient enough. Instead of the small farms, they are using larger, less efficient farms into place, but not all of these farms are used to produce food. These super farms are being used to make things such as cotton, flowers, and other profitable goods in effort to gain as much revenue as possible from the land. Since these products are more profitable than food products, there is a scarcity of food and excess of these cash crops. Also, small farms are much for profitable than these super farms. As the leader of the Zapatista National Liberation, I would like to see these super farms disappear and be replaced with smaller, more profitable farms in order to reverse the damage done by these super farms..

Health disaster While globalized food markets have created malnutrition among many nations it has also helped to spread obesity. Comercialication of food markets has led to an upset in what foods are taxed and advertised to the people. The global food corporations Have been regulating foods high in saturated fats, sugars and salts to nations that had never previously had such foods. These foods are the best for increasing profits and the most profitable products for such companies. These companies are also only advertising such highly saturated foods to populations. This is starting to replace traditional foods that normally give people efficient and healthy diets with unhealthy fatty foods. This is starting to create a steep increase in worldwide obesity and thus lowering productivity of the people. This is also working to destroy the local cultures original foods and is replacing them with westernized unhealthy foods. The factories that are replacing small farms worldwide are producing this unhealthy food stuffs and choking the populations food culture with those fatty foods. This is also giving foreign super corporations a stranglehold on many countries food economics and essentially forcing obesity upon many nations. We believe that these corporations should be more restricted upon what they advertise and to create healthier foods to mass produce. We want to see worldwide corporations move out of poor countries such as my home of Mexico and allow small farmers to take hold of the nations food supply, thus giving us healthier foods and helping to decrease poverty.

self sufficiency vs dependency

Often you will hear how global trade and large scale productions are what keeps the worldwide economy going. You however will never hear anything about how smaller farms are much more productive then these superfarms. Most countries have almost completely gotten rid of small farms and it has made them dependent on foreign exports to supply their people.. Almost every country is feeling this backlash. Dr Amitava Mukherjee, Executive Director, ActionAid India in his paper on 'International Trade and Food Security' confirmed that the area under food crop production in India is on the decline, as is evident from the fact that the index for the area under food grains (1981-82 =100) has declined from 100.7 to 97.3 in 1990-91 in 1994-95, while the index for the area under non-food crops increased from 120.0 to 125.7 during the period. Production of coarse cereals and pulses, the main food for the poor, has shown a declining trend. Mr Victor Suares Carrera, Executive Director of the National Association of Peasant Maize Producers, Mexico said after 14 years of liberalisation under structural adjustment and two years of NAFTA in Mexico, 9,000 years of food security were being wiped out. Mexico, which like India was the centre of the origin of agriculture, from where corn expanded to the USA and the rest of the world, was now in danger in the wake of globalisation. Today, he said, his country was ruled by the law of comparative advantage. However, with NAFTA, the illusion of comparative advantage had evaporated. There was neither food security nor comparative advantage for Mexico under freetrade. Three years ago, Mexico imported half a million tonnes of rice. It now imports 7 million tonnes of rice. Mexicos growing crisis has even created a revolutionary movement among its people called the Zapatista army of national liberation, they are demanding that the government repair the agricultural system and work to abolish their mass poverty. In 1992, Mexico imported 20% of its food. In 1996 it was importing 43%. Eating 'more cheaply on imports is not eating at all for the poor in Mexico'. One out of every two peasants is not getting enough to eat. In the 18 months since NAFTA, the intake of food has been destroyed by 29%. 2.2 million Mexicans have lost jobs and 40 million are in extreme poverty. South Korea, reported how the country had shifted from food self-sufficiency 40 years ago to dependence on the US today. During the five-year period from 1986 to 1991 agricultural imports in South Korea went up from US$1.8 billion to US$5 billion. In the Philippines acreage under rice was declining, while the area under 'cut flowers' was increasing. Three hundred and fifty thousand rural livelihoods will be destroyed by shifting from corn, rice and sugarcane to cut flowers and vegetables for export. The import of 59,000 metric tonnes under the minimum access requirement of GATT would displace 15,000 families annually. Even economically stable countries such as the UK, Japan and Russia are being affected. In the UK and Russia the transition to a market economy resulted in drops in their food security and increases in their imports. Japan sacrificed its food security to become an economic powerhouse. The main reason for these issues is the change from small farms to super farms and comersial goods. The main argument used for the industrialisation of food and corporatisation of agriculture is the low productivity of the small farmer. However, even the World Development Report has accepted that small farms are more productive than large ones. In Brazil, the productivity of a 0-10ha farm was $85/ha while the productivity of a 500 ha farm was $2/ha. In India, a 0-5 acre farm had a productivity of Rs.735/acre while a 35 acre farm had a productivity of Rs.346/acre. In a polyculture system, five units of input are used to produce 300 units of food thus having a productivity of 1.5. In an industrial monoculture, 300 units of input are used to produce 100 units of food, thus having a productivity of .33. The polyculture system which has been called 'low yielding' and hence incapable of meeting food needs is therefore five times more productive than the so-called 'high yielding' monoculture. As in the case of crop production, industrial fisheries and aquaculture also consume more resources than they produce. Everywhere across the world, less food is being produced and less diverse food is being grown, and less is reaching the poor and hungry. Fewer farmers are finding a place in agriculture and even privileged consumers have no food security in the sense of access to safe and nutritious food and thus having a more self sufficient agriculture system is a major economic advantage over the large scale commercial agriculture. The Zapatisita national liberation army believes that countries should shift their agriculture sections from super farms to small farms and become more self sufficient then being dependent on foreign imports for food.

international food crisis

When all the factors of a global food economy are brought together the many issues intertwine in order to create a much larger issue with the small issues feeding on each other. Start with the displacement of poor farmers. A wealthy corporation will use its resources to buy large sums of land in a poor country for pitiful amounts of money. They will buy any land, even occupied land. They will push the poor farmers out of their land and destroy their only source of income and food. This increases countries homeless, poor and food insecure population. These corporations will create super farms on their new land. These farms won’t be dedicated towards foods and products to benefit the nation and people but whatever is profitable. This may or may not be food. These super farms are marginally less productive then the smaller farms they replaced and not only drop the nation’s food creation but its economic abilities by forcing it to sell only specific products. This makes nations poorer and also makes them dependent on importing foods from other countries. The food that these farms might produce is more often then not high in saturated fats, sugars and salts. These unhealthy foods are advertised to the nation’s now poorer and less well fed populace and become a major food source. While the people will get tiny amounts of more food its effects outweigh that by marginal amounts. These foods cause people to become overweight, unhealthy and may even lead to diseases like diabetes and obesity. This food gradually begins to replace the nation’s traditional and often healthier foods. This not only kills culture but diminishes a population’s productivity in super farms. Productivity drops and the nation remains in worse conditions then it had originally. The corporation that started this will then takes its profits and do this in other nation’s further increasing dependency on foreign exports, making the world unhealthy and destroying economies. Almost every country that has succumbed to gloalized food systems are now in worse economic shape and are producing less and importing more. These factors have made a vicious cycle in which globalization effectively lowers the worlds food security. The Zapatista National Liberation Army strictly demands that these corporations pull out of this deadly cycle and move to repair the damage they have caused. We also want nations to focus on making their agriculture systems more efficient and self sufficient, especially our home ofMexico.

Sources:
Pro [] //This website gives good statistics on food security.// [] //This website gives various and useful details on food security.// [] //Gives good information on current food security in the world.// [] //This website has a very helpful video that describes what global food security is.// [] //This website gives detailed history of food security in the Philippines// [] //Gives good details on what the world should do about global food security.// [] //This website describes President Obama's policy on what actions the US should do about global food security.// [] //This website gives a good overview and history of multiple nations food security.//

Con [] //A good over view of some of the social and economic issues this presents// [] //Gives a good definition to start off research// [] //shows how globalization has damaged local markets and caused unhealthy changes// [] //The Challenges to Food Security Posed by Neoliberal Globalization// [] //In depth explanation on how globalization affects local food security and health// [] //Outlines the debate, history and issue// [] //Talks about the issues globalization is making and provides some possible solutions// [] //Very in depth article on food security and how it is connected to economies// [] //A good resource for finding the facts on food security and how to measure it// [] //Outlines asias food security//

Brian, Kyle, Cody, Nick