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New Era for Agriculture? by Marcia Ishii-Eiteman INSTITUTE FOR FOOD AND DEVELOPMENT POLICY SUMMER 2008 VOLUME 14 • NUMBER 2 1 Women growing food sustainably in Borneo New Era for Agriculture? By Marcia Ishii-Eiteman n April 7, 2008, as the media headlines focused on falling grain reserves, soaring food prices, and food riots, representatives from 61 nations met in Johannesburg, South Africa to Oadopt a UN report that proposes urgently needed solutions to the global food system’s systemic problems. The International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technol- ogy for Development (IAASTD) asked the question: What must we do differently to overcome per- sistent poverty and hunger, achieve equitable and sustainable development, and sustain productive and resilient farming in the face of environmental crises? The IAASTD study, sponsored by the UN Environment Programme, Food and Agriculture Organisa- tion, and Development Programme; UNESCO; Global Environment Facility; and the World Bank, represents four years’ work by more than 400 experts who examined the intertwined problems of global agriculture, hunger, poverty, power and influence. Their findings sent shockwaves through the conventional agriculture establishment. Call for an agricultural revolution “Business as usual is not an option,” declared IAASTD Director Robert Watson, echoing the IAASTD’s call for a radical transformation of the world’s food and farming systems. The final report—endorsed by 58 governments and released worldwide on April 15, 2008—concluded that industrial agriculture has degraded the natural resources upon which human survival depends and now threatens water, energy and climate security. The report warns that continued reliance on simplistic technological fixes—including CONTINUED ON PAGE 2 Photo by Leonor Hurtado Photo by transgenic crops—is not a solution authoring the report and in pro- to reducing persistent hunger and viding oversight and governance. could increase environmental prob- History shows that governments lems and poverty. It also critiqued and transnational corporations, the undue influence of transna- acting on their own, have not tional agribusiness on public policy been successful in meeting broad and the unfair global trade policies societal goals. The IAASTD’s suc- that have left more than half of the cess has proven that active civil world’s population malnourished. society participation in intergov- The IAASTD report affirmed that ernmental processes is critical to we have options to change direction. meeting the challenges of the 21st century. By revising policies to strengthen Farmers lunch in the shade overlooking their lettuce field in Mali. the small-scale farm sector, increas- The radical shifts proposed by ing investments in agroecological farm- Northern governments’ practice of the IAASTD report challenge the ing and adopting an equitable dumping food surpluses on coun- status quo. Syngenta walked out of international trading framework, we tries in the global south at prices far the IAASTD process in its final days, can establish more socially and ecologi- below local cost of production. complaining that their synthetic pes- cally resilient systems while maintain- These policies, together with heavy ticides and transgenic products had ing current levels of productivity and reliance on environmentally destruc- not been sufficiently valued. The U.S. improving profitability for small-scale tive industrial agricultural practices, and Australian governments were farmers. The report’s authors suggested have destroyed rural farm communi- especially stung by criticism of their reconfiguring agricultural research, ties around the world, undermining trade liberalization policies, which extension and education to incorporate their ability to produce or buy food were criticized for adverse social and the vital contributions of local and and contributing to environmental environmental impacts while doing pollution and water scarcity. 2 Indigenous knowledge and innovation, little to alleviate hunger and poverty. and embrace equitable, participatory The IAASTD report presents a blue- Just three countries—the U.S., Aus- decision-making processes. print to confront today’s food crisis. tralia and Canada—have refused to This is the first independent global We can begin to reverse structural endorse the report. Like reports on assessment that acknowledges that inequities within and between coun- the climate crisis, the IAASTD’s small-scale, low-impact farming con- tries, increase rural communities’ findings are likely to be considered tributes crucial ecological and social access to and control over resources, an “inconvenient truth” for the functions that must be protected, and and pave the way towards local and industrial agricultural establishment that nations and peoples have the national food sovereignty by strength- and the world’s dominant econo- right to democratically determine their ening farmers’ organizations, creating mies. The U.S. government, the own food and agricultural policies. more equitable and transparent trade agrochemical trade association agreements and increasing local par- CropLife, and other beneficiaries of Food sovereignty: Answer ticipation in policy formation and the current system continue to argue to the food crisis other decision-making processes. loudly against change at a time Today’s global food crisis has been The report concludes that ensuring when both environmentally alarm- exacerbated by a number of factors: food security and recognizing food ing changes and global social unrest the large-scale conversion of food sovereignty requires ending the caused by grinding poverty pose a crops to agrofuel production, price institutional marginalization of the significant threat. volatility driven by rampant com- world’s small-scale producers. modity speculation, changing diets, Marcia Ishii-Eiteman is a senior scientist at PAN An inconvenient truth North America and was a lead author on the and climate-related production Global Report of the IAASTD. shortfalls. However, as documented The IAASTD was precedent-setting ON THE WEB For more information see: by the IAASTD, the deeper roots of for its bold experiment in shared gov- www.panna.org/jt/agAssessment today’s crisis lie in decades of gov- ernance. Civil society groups (along ernmental neglect of the small-farm with government and private sector All IAASTD documents are available sector, grossly unfair trade rules and representatives) participated in both at www.agassessment.org International Agriculture Assessment Regional The NAE report emphasizes three strategies for agriculture’s future. Reports Recommendation: knowledge systems need to be reshaped so that they are more participa- North America & Europe tory, democratic and interactive, with decisions based on shared knowledge and research. by Molly Anderson with Example: farmer-to-farmer networks and citizen advisory councils can help ensure that Phana Nakkharach agricultural knowledge and technology are addressing real public concerns. In North America and Europe (NAE) Recommendation: agricultural policy and governance need to involve more stakeholders in crafting policies that serve the common good. Example: food policy councils in North science and technology have dramati- American cities can help public agencies, businesses and nongovernmental organizations cally increased agricultural productiv- improve public health by increasing access to neighborhood markets stocked with abun- ity over the last 50 years. But the dant, fresh and locally-grown food. IAASTD notes that these gains have Recommendation: funding for agricultural knowledge, science and technology needs to be enormous environmental costs—loss increased and redirected to meet equitable, sustainable development goals: eradicating of biodiversity, soil erosion, and hunger, improving health and rural livelihoods, decreasing poverty, advancing social equity, declining water quality and quantity. and protecting environmental resources while ensuring high yields. Although most people in NAE coun- tries do not suffer from starvation, abundant yields have not eradicated fiber but also essential ecological world institutions and companies hunger and food insecurity. In fact, benefits including pollination, car- exerting a powerful influence on most farmers, farmworkers and other bon capture and water and nutrient world agriculture. Now people in food-system workers earn below liv- recycling. Agriculture serves multiple Europe and North America need to ing wages in the increasingly concen- functions while coping with climate work more cooperatively with peo- trated agricultural markets aided by change, new and emerging diseases, ple in the global south to share current agricultural policies. consumer expectations for product responsibility for supporting agri- The NAE report underscores the quality and safety, changing markets, cultural practices that build healthy 3 multifunctional nature of agricul- and demands for agrofuels. and sustainable food systems. ture—namely agriculture’s role in The authors note that the agrifood Molly Anderson was a coordinating lead author supporting sustainable livelihoods, systems in both North America and of the IAASTD North America/Europe Report and consults through Food Systems Integrity cultural heritage, and biologically- Europe have traditionally consumed (www.foodsystems-integrity.com) in Massachu- diverse landscapes and ecosystems natural resources and labor from setts. Phana Nakkharach, a PAN North America that provide not only food,
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