Food Sovereignty [SOURCE]
Eric Holt Gimenez
ALTERNATIVERADIO.org
March 2010 retrieved by Pat Darnell : Where recorded: Seattle, WA :: Date recorded: 30 Nov 2009
"Food is the weak link that brought down earlier civilizations," says author Lester Brown. And it could bring our own civilization down if we continue with business as usual.
We are entering a new food era, one marked by higher prices, growing numbers of hungry people, and an intensifying competition for land and water. A record number of Americans are now living on food stamps.
Among the factors responsible for the crisis are the policies of a handful of transnational agri-food monopolies and the use of grain to produce fuel for cars.
The sharp climb in grain prices in the last few years underlines the gravity of the situation. The global cost of wheat, rice, corn, and soybeans has roughly tripled, reaching historic highs.
What are the alternatives? Local communities and international social movements are promoting sustainable agriculture and food sovereignty.
Presentation by Eric Holt Gimenez
Eric Holt-Gimenez is the executive director of FoodFirst/Institute for Food and Development Policy. He is the author of "Campesino a Campesino: Voices from Latin America's Farmer to Farmer Movement" and co-author with Raj Patel of "Food Rebellions! Crisis and the Hunger for Justice."
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Related Notes on this presentation include:
- BIO-FUELS cane, palm, and, corn by iNDUStrial food production
- Renewable energy tagets ethanol
New demand for those bio fuel crosses food stuffs at that point due to reduction in wheat, and grain supplies. For example the Arthur Daniels Midlands ... hoarding reserves led to tortilla crisis in Mexico. It is a loss of common sense about food production, sort of a perturbation due to twisted thinking.
Nations facing hunger crisis's is due to vulnerable food system is most often measured in FIVE major crops controled by Megla -Industrial Agri Foods Complex such as:
- large Monsanto Genetics
- GMO seed storage that didn't happen over nite
- Green Revolution of 1960 between Global North versus Global South
Supposed redundancy in genetic manipulation of seeds in our recent past is in error. The conclusion has destroyed food supplies by altering crops through planting Agri bio diversity. It turns out, collected seed to make hybrid HY[D] High Yield crops ... pushes peasants out of their fertile fields. Peasants can not afford the food they themselves have planted.
The most damage occurred when extension of the farm was destroyed by Green Revolution 1960 thru 1980.
Had it worked it would have balanced supplies of food throughout the world but instead produced hungry people and saved some groups... equaled out. For example 11 percent had more food while hunger went up 11 percent as they are forced off their land to postage stamp properties and washed out escarpments.
This Corporate food regime, driven by world bank, and WMF imposed an evolutionary tangent that followed EArl Butz who says: "Get big or get out." Led to over production and the banks foreclosed on properties.
How did the Monies groups destroy food supplies? "This is my [Eric Holtz Gimenez] answer:
Monetary funders said stop growing food and grow exported crops because you need money, dismantle your tariffs... tear them down... get rid of grain reserves ...reserves stabilize prices... "
High prices makes USA and nations of the global South vulnerable. WMF and free trade... or food from global market ..... is no longer from countries of the global south.
Third step to make food supplies FAIL? -- WTO, Nafta, and Kafta, have cemented agriculture into treaties.... Results -- Food Industrial complex is
- highest polluter
- taints water
- imports are increased
- varieties are left to rot in seed banks... losing global heritage
- credit to plant company seeds in the franchise....
- diplacement of peasantry
- Anecdote goes like this -- "... average age of farmer in US is 60" while in ten years the average age of the farmer will be 'DEAD'"
Thus, farmers are out of work, with concentration of profits BUNGE [Bunge's Food Ingredients division is a global business with operations in North and South America, Europe and India.], Monsanto, while a study is made: GMO will save world from hunger. The study is 400 scientists.... and four years later ... food production vs hunger [Trade and Food Production] results were not supportive of GMO "genetically modified organism (GMO) or genetically engineered organism (GEO) is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering..." (wkpda)
GMO 's are not effective.... the seeds are not higher yielding... meanwhile back at the ranch "... intrinsic Bill Gates joins offices with Monsanto to make free stuff.. [Doomsday Seed Vault] in an unholy union.. to further the ambivalence of megla-industrial food complexes ... have resulted in unpredictable results because of disruptive industry genetic study instead of dirt farmer finding the answer.....
For instance: "... drought resistant corn only grows when there is a draught [Eric H Gimenez]..."
The Gates Foundation [HERE] with a whopping $34.6 billion endowment and a legal necessity to spend $1.5 billion a year on charitable projects around the world to maintain its tax free charitable status. No project is more interesting at the moment than a curious project in one of the world’s most remote spots, Svalbard. Bill Gates is investing millions in a seed bank on the Barents Sea near the Arctic Ocean, some 1,100 kilometers from the North Pole. Svalbard is a barren piece of rock claimed by Norway and ceded in 1925 by international treaty (see map).
World Bank report on agriculture say the north benefits in liberalized trade, while the study was made to support the opposite result. The speaker Mr Gimenez suggests "Africa Union should not sign the free trade agreement ...."
(Phone 8004441977 alternativeradio.org)
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