June 4

12:39 GMT +00:00

Protectionism v food security

Posted by:: Economist.com

Categories:: Agriculture; EU; International trade

FOOD is a more emotional topic than ever. With talks underway this week to deal with the global crisis, Europeans (who have been battling over their own agricultural policies for years) are being asked to take a fresh look at their policies.

Over at the BBC, Mark Mardell writes:

No one doubts South American beer drinkers are grateful for cheap European barley, but I am here to ask if in general EU policy is harmful. Food shortages and rising prices lend a new urgency to old arguments which blame EU policy for harming agriculture in the developing world.

One argument is that cheap European exports make it impossible for farmers in poor countries to compete. Subsidies can be hugely distorting. But Peter Mandelson also makes a valid point when he warns against confusing food security in the developing world with protectionism. There is a fine line to be tread here. Cheaper food for the poor is, on the whole, better than the alternative.

The dilemma is how to make cheap food available in poor countries without forcing people in rich countries to pay a bundle for it, unfairly cutting out suppliers in the developing world and generating a huge carbon footprint. Many suggestions to alleviate the current crisis are medium-term solutions, at best. The question on many European minds this week is what the region, already a generous aid donor to the developing world, should be doing in the near-term.

(Photo credit: AFP)