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 On 3 July, a conference was held at the European Parliament (EP) on the issue of agricultural policy and the global food crisis, entitled "Who will feed the world?" Participants included EP President Hans-Gert Pöttering, French Agriculture Minister Michel Barnier, Agriculture Commissioner Mariann-Fischer-Boel, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and Development Commissioner Louis Michel. The conference was organised by the French Presidency of the Council, in partnership with the European Parliament and the Commission.
The conference aimed to analyse the pressures on agriculture posed by global food and energy shortages and climate change, and to provide answers for policy-makers at regional and global levels on how to address these fundamental problems. "Immediate response should go hand in hand with long-term policies to strengthen agricultural production in developing countries," said Marianne Fischer Boel. She announced that the Commission will utilize surplus funds from the Budget for the Common Agricultural Policy to support farmers in developing countries with seeds and fertilizers to increase production and stabilize markets. Jacques Diouf, Director General of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, in turn underscored that "current trade rules are not providing incentives for African farmers. Factors which are guaranteeing food supply and local production need to be strengthened." Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Managing director of the Worldbank, lauded African leaders new commitment to invest into agricultural policies. Pertaining to the acute food crisis and climate disasters Okonjo-Iweala recommended insurance systems on the national, regional and international level to counteract income losses of farmers as well as serious price fluctuations of staple foods on the global level. Regarding the latter she suggested the establishment of a transparent global stock management. Sources: |
