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You can read it here: Farm subsidies – a necessary evil?
Surprisingly adequate and intelligent analysis. Highly recommended!
The headline sums pretty much up Fleix Salmon’s take (Food: Against Self-Sufficiency – Portfolio.com) on the problems that face food production. Felix argues that:
“… global agricultural production needs to be increased, significantly, and secondly, that short-sighted agricultural and tariff policies can cause mass starvation. The solution to both of these problems is a bigger, freer market in agricultural goods – not a reversion to some impossible ideal of self-sufficiency.”
Somehow this “freer market in agricultural goods” take reminds me of the origins of the current financial crisis – we can see what very liberal rules in very important branches of the global economy (which both financial services and food productions of course are) can lead to when the market fails.
What I’m trying to say is, I wouldn’t dismiss the idea of self-sufficiency (for example the EU’s CAP has been centered around this very idea and considering the outcome – the variety of food and the quality of it that EU currenlty produces – I’d rather say, it’s been quite a success) and blindly start believeing in the limitless power of the free hand of the market.
I wouldn’t compare food to other products that are effectively traded and speculated about. Food (and the price of it for that matter) is something that affects every citizen of the planet. I rather believe that self-sufficiency is a step in the right direction…
Forcing the agriculture market to be more free and bigger will just bring along more speculation and more volatile prices, not to mention the negative enivironmental effects. Naturally, this would have a smaller effect on people in the US or EU (an inconvenience really), but it would have a grave effect on the people with small incomes. When someone specualtes with the price of oil, well the world doesn’t exactly stop. But when food prices are driven up (and that’s pretty much what you will get with volatility) there are lives at stake, not just the question whether a stake for dinner or just pasta.
Well well well… the EU (finally) dropped its rules banning ‘weird shaped’ or ‘wonky’ fruit and vegetables to be sold – The return of the curvy cucumber: Commission to allow sale of ‘wonky’ fruit and vegetables.
Image courtesy of OakleyOriginals@Flickr
The ‘official’ explanation goes like this:
“The Commission’s initiative to get rid of these standards is a major element in its ongoing efforts to streamline and simplify EU rules and cut red tape.”
An interview with the Commission spokesman is a “bit” more specific, calling the regulation ’stupid’ – you can watch the video here.
It’s not a very significant piece of news per se, but I think it can bee seen as a symbol of an end to an era of overabundance of food.
