World Food Security
Food security is defined as the constant availability of sufficient food to maintain an active, healthy life for all people. At the heart of security is enough food and people’s ability to physically and economically to get it.
Food security is defined at different levels:
1) global,
2) regional,
3) national,
4) local and
5) at the household level.
World food security means that the world as a whole must produce enough food to meet growing needs. In this case, trade should be carried out without interference with relatively stable prices in order to allow countries to the extent necessary to supplement its production by imports. This also implies the operation of a certain system of ensuring the necessary reserves to insure against the unexpected decline in production or price hikes.
Food security is measured by the number of days during which the consumption can be achieved at the expense of existing stocks of all countries.
Minimum level for reliable supply of foodstuffs Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said global food reserves from the last crop, equal to 17% of global consumption, or enough to meet the needs for approximately two months. In general, according to calculations, the world produces enough food to meet the needs of the population.
The concept of food security at national level does not mean food self-sufficiency. She suggests that the country should produce enough food for their own needs, but if the comparative advantages of not contribute to this, it should be able to import the necessary quantities of food and ensure food needs.
Definition of national food security is based on various indicators, including the existing level of food consumption per capita, self-sufficiency ratio, which is determined by the ratio of total food production to total consumption.
According to calculations, in 2004, out of 113 developing countries, low food security had 24 countries, 22 of them – in Africa. Ratio of food security even though shows the vulnerability of the country, but do not give a complete picture of the actual provision of food security.
Food security at national and regional levels – necessary but not sufficient condition to ensure food security of people. It includes the ability of the country, households obtain the necessary goods.
Ensuring food security at household level is associated with income per capita. Low level of income leads to the fact that price fluctuations have a direct impact on the food situation of the poor not only in the city, but also in rural areas. In many countries the owners of small plots of land, are net food buyers, not self-sufficient in food through their sites.
There are several ways to determine the availability of food products of the population.
It figures:
1) security products to maintain the required physical activity,
2) indicators of weight and growth of people
3) content of foods consumed nutrients and minerals
4) the ability of people to buy the necessary food.
The most commonly used calculation is based on caloric needs. People who do not receive the required number of calories, are chronically hungry.
And although the absolute and relative size of the population suffering from malnutrition, reduced the total number of people who are constantly hungry, or prone to malnutrition, remains enormous. Only in developing countries die from malnutrition every year 20 million people. It is therefore understandable that the decision of the world food problem – a political demand worldwide.
Malnutrition – a common condition for the general population of the world. The traditional diets of many countries, although often contain enough calories, but does not include the required number of proteins and fats. Their lack of a negative impact on human health and the quality of the workforce, which in many cases poorly suitable for use in the modern sectors of the economy.
The large number of hungry people, especially in developing countries, due to the fact that agriculture in these countries can not meet food needs through domestic production.
If the industrialized Sarani in the last three or four decades of the 20 century, self-sufficiency ratio has risen from 99 to 113%, in developing countries it decreased from 103 to 98%. In many developing regions, the degree of self-sufficiency has declined with the exception of Asia, but there it is below 100%. Self-sufficiency in food has decreased in the Eastern European countries and former Soviet Union.
Food insecurity in some countries, as noted, can neutralize the expense of foreign trade. Food – an important part of foreign trade (9,5%). World grain imports 11% of its total production exceeding 200 million tons of main suppliers of food products on world markets are the industrialized countries of the West. Producing 50% of agricultural products, they provide 70% of world exports of agricultural commodities, and only 40% of imports, and over the last decade, their share in exports increased and decreased in imports. Major exporter of food in the world are the United States – 13,3%. Their share in world exports of grain, meat has increased, the share of EU countries.
Growth in agricultural exports of industrialized countries of the West has occurred in many products that were previously supplied to developing countries. For instance, sugar exports from the industrialized countries account for 27% of this export of rice – 40, Citrus – 73%.
Industrialized countries from net food importers have become net exporters.
Until the middle of last century, developing countries export more grain than imported, mainly due to restrictions limiting consumption. In 1948 – 1952 years. they have a deficit of over 4 million tons, or 2% of production in 1987-1991. it reached 84 million tonnes, or 16% of production. The level of import dependence varies considerably by region. The highest level was formed in the Middle East (45%) and in sub-Saharan Africa (28%). Many researchers consider as the critical 25-30% level of consumption of imported food, after which comes the strategic dependence on imports.
Overproduction of food in developed countries in the long run down prices for agricultural products on world markets, which created obstacles to increasing production in developing countries.
Partly for this reason, partly because of the increasing demand of grain supplies in developing countries has increased. Most of the developing countries are net importers of grain. Reducing the role of these countries in world agricultural exports with respect to reducing their foreign exchange earnings, a negative impact on foreign exchange reserves is particularly underdeveloped countries. Many countries are unable to provide food security at national level. Why is this happening?
The reasons for underproduction and hunger. Reproductive process in the global agricultural system in many ways constrained negative factors. Too many products are made in areas with high production costs, and potentially efficient producers lose their markets to competitors. As noted, among industrialized nations greatest natural advantages have a few countries – U.S., Canada, Australia, with extensive agricultural land per rural resident, favorable climatic conditions. But on world food markets as exporters stand almost all Western countries, with significant impact on pricing. Thus, Western European countries have become net exporters of grain.
Determinants of this situation are:
1) Agricultural Policy data states. Agricultural development of Western countries is largely dependent on production subsidies. In recent decades, this component of agricultural policy has become more ambitious.
Amount of subsidies (direct payments, cheap loans, guaranteed prices) is 40% of the cost of production.According to OECD estimates, the magnitude of subsidies in 2005 ranged from 4% of agricultural production in New Zealand and 10% in Australia, over 20% in the U.S. and 30% in Canada, 43% in EU countries, up to 62 – 80% in Japan and EFTA countries. A significant portion of the cost of farmers in industrialized countries is compensated by the state. The state not only provides a higher level of production, but also supports the export, protect agricultural producers from foreign competition. Many other countries have huge natural resources for agricultural development, have the opportunity to grow two crops a year. This allows a number of researchers to speak of them as the potential breadbasket of mankind. But they generally fail to provide its population with food.The reasons for this are many, including most notably, their level of economic development.
2) Agriculture Eastern European and developing countries as a whole remains underdeveloped in technical equipment.
Despite the positive developments in several countries related to the green revolution, developing countries lag behind the level of industrialized countries on the application of fertilizers in 1,5 times (excluding China – more than 2-fold), labor productivity per capita – in 9,5 times.
3) In many countries, exacerbated by land-use forms of backward relations, the representation of natural and semi-subsistence individual peasant farms, large latifundia, community, conservation of usury, sharecropping.
The smallest farms predominate in Asia and Africa. They can not use modern tools, fertilizers, use the services of credit institutions. Many of them do not provide adequate nutrition for the family owners. In India, for such are about 60 million farms of less than 1 hectare of land.
4) In countries with significant agricultural potential of agricultural production is used for the overall development of the country. The prices set for agricultural products, undercounted to maintain the standard of living of industrial workers, agricultural exports subject to duties to finance imports of machinery and equipment. In some countries with high agricultural potential, this bias is significant.
For example, in Argentina, Colombia and price containment were respectively 38 and 55% of the value of agricultural products in 1982-1987. In the group of poorest countries in the agricultural producers receives less than 25% of their income. In the same direction on pricing influences dominate the global market of agricultural products of TNCs who belittle the purchase prices. In the early 80′s four TNCs controlled 60-65% of trade in sugar, three TNK – 80% market share of bananas, three to five TNK – 85% of tea and cocoa beans, from four to eight TNCs were holding in their hands the 85-90% all trade in coffee, tobacco and cotton.
5) Deformation of reproduction in the agricultural sector are evident not only in pricing but also in development priorities, including funding from government agricultural services, infrastructure and research. To obtain the necessary foreign currency to reduce foreign debt, many countries are under pressure from the IMF, the World Bank forced to switch significant acreage to the production of export crops such as cotton, groundnuts and others at the expense of food. Related to this is the fact that the number of importers of food increases.
All this indicates that the food problem is determined by various aspects of global development – from economic and political to the socio-cultural and ethno-social. Among them are the most important role belongs to the overall development of the productive forces and production relations.
Statistical analysis shows that agriculture in developing countries, causing serious damage to the policies of the industrialized countries. Private estimates suggest that eliminating violations of market forces in their agriculture will reduce the self-developed countries, food up to 85%, increase self-reliance of developing countries to 102%, and an increase in net income of developing countries on food exports.
Increasing food production in developing countries and Eastern European countries and the liberation of international trade on the strains may contribute to food availability in these countries and improve nutrition. But often this is not enough. Large-scale famine occurs when food supplies are not significantly decreased (Ethiopia – 1972-1974.) Or even increased (Bangladesh, 1974). At the same time of famine has been avoided, although there was a reduction in food production. There are a number of countries in which, although food availability per capita has improved, but large segments of the population chronically undernourished.
This indicates that sufficient food at the national level does not mean that every resident will be able to get it in the required amount. Under modern conditions of market forces are unable to solve the problems of hunger and malnutrition of people in many parts of the world. Destabilization of the food markets, protectionist policies of industrialized countries, a huge financial debt of developing countries make little real to most countries import food in adequate quantities.
Food assistance.
Aggravation of the food situation in several developing countries in the early 70′s caused the need for urgent action to alleviate the food problem. An important tool to reduce the problem of hunger was a food aid, which includes the transfer of funds under the concessional loans and grants gifts.
Food aid has become one of the elements of food security. Since the mid 70′s, its volume has increased from 8 to 13 million tons of grain per year in 2000, or up to 0,7% of production. In addition, increased over the period preferential delivery of non-cereal foods (milk powder, vegetable oil) from 330 tons to 1.2 million tons
It should be noted that, despite the increase in the absolute size of food aid, the value of grain imports in its total income for consumption by people in developing countries have gradually increased and the proportion of aid declined.
The main supplies of food aid goes to countries prisaharskoy Africa, which accounts for more than 70% of its total volume. Overall in the last decade has seen an increase in aid to least developed countries. Among the other most major help get Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia, in Asia – India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Latin America – El Salvador, Guatemala, Jamaica, Peru. Due to the sharp decline in agricultural production, food aid began to arrive in the Eastern European countries and the republics of Central Asia.
Long-term supply of food in large quantities give undoubted temporary benefits to recipient countries. They mitigate the food shortage, facilitate the provision of emergency aid to the starving. Help reduce foreign exchange expenditure on imports of food and saves money needed for other industries.
However, for socio-economic development of host countries, it can have negative short-and long-term consequences. In this regard, is the reorientation of international assistance to supply food to technology transfer and supply of equipment and other means of production. Technical and financial assistance is provided not only to agriculture in developing countries, but also other branches of the food complex. Lagging them from the West to developing countries, as well as in agriculture, very much.
Developing countries seek to eliminate the negative impact of donor countries for food aid. They oppose the use of aid for political pressure, are interested in expanding aid on a multilateral basis, to an increase in concessional lending and grant assistance, linking food aid with programs of economic and social development.
Donors of food aid. Food aid is carried out on a bilateral and multilateral basis. She engaged in inter-state organizations and associations – OECD, EU, OPEC, etc. 80 – 90 years tended to reduce the assistance provided through the inter-state organizations, and increase it by non-governmental.
The largest international organization dealing with food and agriculture in the world, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), established in 1945 In addition to collecting and analyzing information, FAO is coordinating the food aid to developing countries, and promote agriculture. She develops and implements a variety of technical assistance projects. In the system of the FAO since 1967, a program of industrial cooperation in the implementation of which is attended by over one hundred corporate agribusiness.
Significant contribution to the development of food issues make other international organizations, including the UN was created in 1974 by the World Food Council, which oversees the global food situation and arrange for assistance to needy countries. In 1977 he created the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), it assists developing countries to improve the food situation by providing funds in the form of concessional loans in the form of grants.
The main supplier of aid on a bilateral and multilateral basis are the United States. For many years, they supply food to developing countries or on concessional or grant. In the mid 60-ies on the U.S. accounted for 96% of the volume of food aid. In the 90 years this proportion has fallen by 40%. As the largest provider of aid, the United States in its foreign relations has repeatedly resorted to a policy of “food weapon.” Large supplies of food aid provided in the 70 years of Egypt during the Sadat, Chile – after a military coup. In the 60 years of significant grant aid was provided to Tunisia, the Philippines and South Vietnam, and on concessional terms – India, Pakistan, South Vietnam and South Korea.
Along with food aid, expansion of agricultural exports to the U.S. since the late 70′s came to a policy of stimulating food production in developing countries. They proceeded from the fact that this approach contributes to political and social stability in the world and allows the U.S. to expand its trade ties.
In the 80 years of food aid has increased the role of Western Europe. In comparison with the U.S. The EU has a more moderate direction in food aid. Food supplies include cereals, milk powder, ghee and sugar. Much of the aid goes to least developed countries in Africa and Asia. Basically, it is concentrated in the countries associated with the Union system of the various agreements. Separate trend in food aid the EU – the allocation of funds for agricultural development in developing countries.