By: Kelsey Kotts
Global governance structures and international organizations’ development initiatives ought to shift away from programs and policies that focus on solving world hunger by solely emphasizing the eradication of food insecurity worldwide. Rather, in solving global hunger- especially in the Global South- policy and development objectives should shift towards an emphasis on food democracy, agroecology, and food sovereignty. A move away from food security initiatives towards more equitable and sustainable goals for food sovereignty inherently critiques the global trade system’s dominance and control of LDCs. Advocating for food sovereignty and the democratization of food production and distribution is vital for not only ending world hunger but for giving the power and control of food back to the people.
Urbanization did not just move people physically away from farming and agricultural practices. It, more importantly, moved people away from both the knowledge and the power over their localized food production and distribution of goods. The historical decline in world populations directly involved in agriculture, as well as the overall decline in both developed and underdeveloped states’ agricultural populations, has moved the concentration of power over food into the hands of a few multinational agribusinesses. One example of the extreme concentration of power over food is the U.S.’s largest privately held company, Cargill, which accounts for “nearly half of the world’s global grain production” (The Centralization of Food Systems and Political Power).
(Graphics received from: The Centralization of Food Systems and Political Power)
Because food is extremely centralized, food security initiatives and development programs cannot fully address the global power dynamics at play in the agricultural trade sector. Securing access to food does not guarantee that people will have sustainable, equitable means to access food for themselves without having to rely on Global North aid or structural development programs. Caroline Webb writing for Transformation argues that “efforts towards developing global ‘food security’ have promoted the consolidation of food production in agribusiness and the liberalization of agricultural trade.” The legacy of the Green Revolution over 50 years ago- with its implementation of large-scale agricultural production technologies- continues to impact small farmers, the biodiversity of crop production, land erosion, soil nutrient depletion and has significantly transferred power away from people in their control of food. Calls for food security do not address the anti-democratic structure of food, nor how the consolidation of natural resources is the driving factor of poor health, hunger, and the root of global poverty (Webb). It is only in the relinquishment of privatized natural resources from these massive, multinational agribusinesses and the establishment of global food sovereignty that the democratization of food can occur, and the eradication of hunger can be actualized.
One proposal that could democratize global food systems is the concept of food sovereignty. Food sovereignty is simply defined as “the right of peoples to healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods, and their right to define their own food and agriculture systems” (Nyéléni 2007). The concept dates back to the mid-90s, but was first brought to the international stage in Mali in 2007, when a collective effort of both individuals and organizations came together to host the first Forum for Food Sovereignty. This forum is a direct example of people, particularly those living in rural communities, demanding more democratic, sovereign control over their food and calling out the problematic global system’s structure that lends vulnerable populations in the Global South to be dependent on transnational companies and the international market rather than reliant on their own localized communities in securing food. An especially pressing matter that transcends the anti-democratic critiques of the systems today was brought up throughout the forum when discussing the impending climate crisis, and the implications unsustainable agricultural practices are having on LDCs’.
The capitalist-driven, industrialized, large-scale production of agriculture has greatly contributed to the climate crisis and the exploitation of sovereign resources in the Global South. A lasting impact of the Green Revolution and its technologies- particularly chemicals- is the degradation of the land’s ability to adapt and naturally recover, as well as human-caused environmental events such as flooding, droughts, and downstream pollution. Reports estimate that “65% of soils on agricultural lands in Africa have become degraded since the middle of the 20th century” (UCL Democratising Food) and that climate change is increasing the frequency of events like flooding and droughts happening worldwide. An important aspect of climate justice that could be better addressed with the implementation of food sovereignty concerns the global power dynamics at play between LDCs and the hegemonic countries that operate these multinational agricultural businesses. The result of foreign control over LDCs’ food is driving the climate crisis further, and the harm falls on those with little to no control over their resources or food production. Therefore, advocating for food sovereignty will result in a more agroecological approach to how food operates and will make a more equitable, communal, and sustainable use of the land and indigenous resources. Communal agriculture can help bring climate justice to marginalized communities while ensuring they have control and access to food simultaneously.
The democratic control and participation of people over their food supply and production has had success in the past. In Burkina Faso, where localized, democratic participation across 125 villages addressed topics like water retention and soil health, there were optimistic results in improving the livelihood of people living in the relatively impoverished nation. The localized focus on the environment improved water retention and aided soil health by an astonishing “increase between 40% and 300% compared to earlier methods” (UCL Democratising Food). Agroecology’s emphasis on the consideration of local environmental conditions in combination with the restructuring of the global market to allow for the sovereign control of food can address many socioeconomic issues ranging from indigenous rights to poverty to the eradication of hunger overall.
Kelsey Kotts (kkotts@gwu.edu) is a student at The George Washington University, Majoring in International Affairs and Africana Studies with a concentration in Conflict Resolution.
