The Food Wars by Walden Bello

nutrient in trade protection is linked to respective(a) issues such(prenominal) as poverty, low income, poor infrastructure, unfair access to cut back, water, credit and markets. Food security is also threatened due to indwelling disasters such as floods, droughts and further exacerbated by internal conflicts which can dislocate artless and farming communities. These issues and challenges are the normal and instant debates among the global community of practice regarding sustenance security go the needs and necessities of the churl husbandmans, who are trusty for the studyity of nutrient merchandise around the globe, are non addressed.In The Food Wars, Walden Bello presents the important and animated issues of the north intimately-South power gap and hierarchy regarding nutriment security. Bello depicts and argues the role of the Bretton Woods institutions influencing agricultural policies in growing countries, organizations such as the WTO shrewd rules and regu lations that exclude developing nations and their smallholder farmers, while bestower organizations such as USAID heavily incline developing nations to wed unfriendly internal policies. or so importantly, Bello closes the gap amidst the policies make by multilateral institutions, developing giving medication ministries and their implication on the peasant farmer. The geomorphological valuation account had massive implication and consequences in Mexico and the Philippines. According to Bello, the geomorphologic allowance tear apart the traditionalistic corn farmers of Mexico and move a nation that was once the reliable base of corn domestication to a major corn importer. Furtherto a greater extent, the creation of the North American Free Trade capital of New Hampshire (NAFTA) in an contract to create rest of agricultural trade further displaced smallholder farmers.Policies compel by the North take over entertained the traditional farming practices of the peasant farmer that has existed for decades to commercial agricultural practices in an attempt to increase agricultural efficiency and prove intellectual nourishment security. Following the structural adjustment and NAFTA Mexico roll in the hayd severe regimen danger while the young labor military posture from countrified farms stated migrating to the US. Bello also discusses the Philippines experience regarding the rice shortage. The Philippines once a major rice exporter nation owing to the giving medication echnical services geared towards peasant farmers became a major nutrient importer due to the effect of structural adjustments. Philippines entry to the WTO increased the democracyed estates payment to its debts, extracting funds from variant political sympathies services including towards peasant farmers while the nations aliment insecurity increased. Bello states Today, the status of the Philippines as a imperishable importer of rice and, more generally, a force out f ood importer is implicitly accepted by a government that does non put one across the countryside as an essential element in the nations economic discipline(Bello, 67).Bello also discusses the impact of the structural adjustment in the African agriculture. In what Bello denominate Destroying African Agriculture, he discusses the novelty of the African continent as a major exporter of food to a major importer. The aim of the structure adjustment in Africa was to loosen governments involvement in rural agriculture such as subsidise fertilizers. The ultimate goal was to attract the offstage vault of heaven into the agriculture economy so that ultimately agriculture productivity increases through industrialized mode of agriculture sooner of the peasant agriculture.However, according to Bello, the common soldier vault of heaven fai conduct to step in to fill in the gaps. In the case of Malawi, the extreme function over the government to adopt structural adjustment led the ext reme food insecurity of the country and eventually led to famine. Prior to giving into the knowledge do chief(prenominal) sticks and IMFs pressure to adopt to these adjustments, Malawi had a fertilizer subsidy curriculum that set upd peasants farmers with affordable fertilizers. After surrendering to the structural adjustment, the government of Malawi withdrew its support to peasant farmers with the commit of the private sector stepping in.However, food fruit declined hugely while the nation turned to aid. Malawi at last refused to abide by these adjustments and continued to provide subsidized fertilizer which was followed by tierce years of crop surplus. Furthermore, Bello emphasizes the contradicting approaches mingled with the WTO and the structural adjustment of the Bretton Wood Institutions. While the World Bank and the IMF were forcing governments to abandon the various subsidies they have set up in place for the peasant farmer, the WTO failed to eliminate subsidies by the US and European governments.Bello states Subsidies now account for 40 share of the value of agricultural production in the European Union and 25 percent in the United States (Bello, 76-77). Smallholder farmers were in no position to compete in such unfair market milieu and thus the rise in food insecurity around the globe. Agrofuels were once considered the reform to the massive consumption of fossil fuels and the jet plane alternative. However, as Bello mentions and debates that US and EU agrofuels policies were responsible for three quarters of the 140 percent increase in food prices between 2002 and February 2008 (Bello, 123).Agrofuels become an opportunity of major improvement making for multiple multinational corporations. governing officials and development workers indorsed this magical solution with the hope of aiding their beneficiaries. However, the serious demand of agrofuel consumption and production led to extensive environmental damage, contaminant and th reats to biodiversity. Furthermore, the production of agrofuels failed to be sustainable for it exploits more energy than it produces.However, corporate agriculture and various privileged politicians are the primary beneficiaries to agrofuels and the main drivers to projects and policies that are favorable to it. According to Shepard Daniel and Anuradha Mittals article The Great Land take hold of Rush for Worlds tillage Threatens Food security of the Poor, the demand for stain has driven investors from around the globe to the original grime grab Attracted by this braggart(a) demand and market, investors- mainly from the private sector and OECD member countries- are targeting vast tracts of land to produce crops for agrofuels in developing countries, (Daniel and Mittal, 4).The land grab in various developing nations is not only coming from the habitual Northern countries just rather from emerge economies of China, India, Saudi Arabia and UAE. Furthermore, pressured by the in ternational institutions and conflicting investors, developing countries governments fail to make the reserve decisions that favors smallholder farmers. More and more evidence is indicating that in that location is not much room for smallholder farmers in this global rush to massive land grabs.Peasant farmers are being constrained out of their lands, forced to work on industrialized agriculture while losing their family/ traditional values. The global land grab is not only eliminating traditional farming heritages but is also creating a severe food shortage and insecurity in the most vulnerable areas of the world. Walden Bello presents a holistic program line regarding international food insecurity as influenced by various global players of the North.It offers an extensive analysis of the power hierarchy that exists between the North- South divide and its contribution to the various failed endeavors and attempts to achieving global food security. Bello also emphasizes on food so vereignty as the in good order of each nation and its citizens to sustain and come on its own capacity to produce rudimentary food, while respecting environmental, productive and cultural diversity. Most importantly, the book emphasizes on the importance of the club of peasant farmers in decision and indemnity making being key to achieving food security and healthy economic branch as a whole.