“One third of all deaths of children under 5 in
developing countries linked to undernutrition” – WORLD FOOD PROGRAMME
“842 million people do not eat enough to be healthy” – WORLD FOOD
PROGRAMME
“One in every 8 people goes to bed hungry each night” – WORLD FOOD
PROGRAMME
A lot of people are going hungry right now - and it’s
not just developing lands which are suffering. As well as parts of Africa and Asia where
droughts, famines, despots and wars have always caused problems, food shortages
now seem to be spreading to the West and once thriving economies such as Japan.
Recently, a British couple committed suicide because
they couldn’t cope with unemployment and the lack of money. To supplement their
meagre income, they’d been walking for 42 miles a day to collect rations from a
charity centre and, whether from shame
or sheer despair, reached the point when they simply gave up - just two more victims
from an increasingly desperate generation. Greece, Italy, even America, all are
having to cope with a sluggish economy, joblessness and rising food prices.
In the UK, food inflation is currently outpacing the
average wage increase, spiking last year to a 5% increase in what was once perceived
to be, if not recession-proof, then certainly a recession-resistant industry. Delegates to the Oxford Farming Conference a couple of years ago were asked to consider just who has power over food prices. According
to the experts, it’s certainly not consumers. Nor is it farmers, who are
currently being squeezed by dwindling suppliers on the one hand and the decrease in retail customers on the other.
But how much power do governments wield? On the
surface, very little, they would argue, citing two reasons: For one thing, agriculture now operates
in a global context, and secondly (at least as far as the United Kingdom is
concerned), the government is keen to reduce farm subsidies in the belief that
increasing world demand along with higher prices will compensate growers for
these lost revenues. The demand will always be there, of course. But where is
the supply? And how can people on low
incomes afford it?
As well as the unwarranted increase in costs, another
worrying factor is coming into play – the monopoly of food by huge transnational
(TNCs) who are investing billions in agriculture and supplies.
Has anyone noticed the speed with which small farms and
food outlets are going out of business? How global conglomerates are buying up
land for intensive farming and how supermarket chains are getting bigger and
more powerful?
Speaking to the OFC, Dr Alan Renwick – SAC Head of the
Land Economy & Environmental Research Group, identified a few of these TNCs
with genuine clout. Cargill, Syngenta, Monsanto, Wal-Mart and, to a certain
extent, Tesco, are far more influential than the state whose intervention in
agriculture and trade has been diminishing.
To date, three TNCs control almost 50% of the proprietary seed market.
Personally, I wouldn’t discount the role which
governments are playing - or are likely to play in the future. No doubt it
suits them to maintain a helpless and therefore blameless profile in the face of rising food scarcity.
However, they must surely appreciate the power such a monopoly can wield. Control
the world’s food supplies and you control the world.
We can also count on genetic engineering to create
further demand, thanks to the proliferation of GM cereals. At one time, farmers
could depend on nature to provide generously – with one seed purchase
providing healthy crops for several years. Yet there is nothing natural about some
seeds produced by scientists in labs. They may be resistant to certain pests or
climates, but many GM seeds are not self-propagating. Instead of having plenty
of fertile new seed for the following crop, the farmer is forced to buy fresh
seed from the supplier every time.
Sadly, starvation and malnutrition are nothing
new. Back in the 1980s, an article in The Boston Globe stated: “A
world with nearly a billion persons living close to starvation has to find ways
to help the poorest nations to enjoy something approaching the bounty reaped by
the richest nations, “The most disheartening
aspect of undernourishment . . . is that the world has a
clear-cut capacity to feed everyone.”
Surely it’s time that
capacity was realised.
UPDATE! 15th July 2021
With Prince Charles pushing for sustainable farming, and concerned health practitioners mulling over the government's latest food strategy (i.e. tax), I'm reminded of other factors that contribute to poor nutrition, even in seemingly fertile countries such as the UK.
Intensive farming, the use of chemicals and the failure to let land 'rest' have robbed the soil of its natural properties to such a degree that produce - especially green vegetation - no longer contains essential vitamins and minerals to the necessary extent.
Under the Mosaic Law, a sabbath rest was required every seventh year, during which the land lay fallow and its fertility was restored. Today, this can be achieved by regular crop rotation. (Exodus 23:11)
Following a similar regime and using natural methods would not only improve consumers' health, but must surely help the environment.
