JEF in the Media

By: Eckart Woertz

Abstract: After the food price hikes of 2007/2008 agricultural policies and food security considerations are firmly back on the international agenda after nearly three decades of neglect. Population growth, changing diets and biofuel production back sustained demand growth while increased supplies are threatened by declining productivity gains, stretched water resources and climate change. It is a matter of open debate how food production can be increased. Suggestions include application of green revolution technology to underdeveloped countries in Africa and Latin America, the usage of genetically modified plants or improved water management. Beside technical aspects socio-economic factors weigh in the equation. Access to land, credit, markets and know-how are unevenly distributed and agricultural subsidies in the developed world often hurt farmers in developing countries. This brief assesses challenges of global food security and what could be done to take on major challenges ahead. Particular attention is paid to the situation in Gulf countries, where population growth and declining agricultural production will lead to an increasing reliance on food imports in the future.

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