| Financial Crises Lead to '2008 Land Grab' |
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| Written by Kiki Hubbard | |
| Monday, 27 October 2008 | |
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Financial crises, food insecurity, and high market prices. This is the global economic environment that has put nations concerned about feeding their populations on a purchasing spree: a race to privatize land to ensure more agricultural production. For some, it's a way to make a buck. These global buyouts are documented in a new report called "Seized: The 2008 land grab for food and financial security." Countries are purchasing land or negotiating rights to land so that companies can use these foreign soils to grow food. For example, Cambodia's Prime Minister recently announced a leasing of paddy fields to Qatar and Kuwait. In return for letting these countries produce rice here to export back home, Cambodia is receiving almost $600 million in loans. Meanwhile, the World Food Program is shipping $35 million in food aid to Cambodia's countryside, where hunger plagues its population. And other countries, like Thailand and Pakistan (among many others), are giving up land in exchange for oil agreements. The checkerboard approach to land aquisitions and leasing may seem to hold some promise for countries seeking to supplement local food production. But some say these land grabs extend the export agriculture model, which experts say we need to move away from, not toward, in order to achieve food security, and better: food sovereignty. Producing food for outside markets has facilitated the food crisis, as local needs are not always met and market prices put food out of reach for many hungry populations. Privatizing fertile agricultural land in the world's poorest and hungriest nations furthers the idea that food is merely a commodity, not a basic right. Source: GRAIN
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  written by Blind Hog, October 27, 2008
I am surprised to hear anyone suggest that government ownership would increase the standard of living for those who till the land. Maybe foreign ownership should be examined. But leave the land in the hands of those who love it, not paper shufflers and fat cats.
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It's true what our moms said...we are what we eat. In fact, it's truer than they thought. What I eat doesn't just affect me anymore, it affects all of us.
Unfortunately, the story of food can sometimes be complicated. But envirovores help each other out...which is why this blog will be bringing you news, tips, and information about food and the environment every step of the way.
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