By The National Secretariat for the Summit of the Americas

Recent suggestions in Asia that an Organisation of Rice Exporting Countries (OREC) was on the drawingboard attracted attention to growing concerns about the ability of suppliers of food staples to confront rising demand, high costs and the impact of climate change.

Thailand’s lack of enthusiasm has put the idea on hold for the time being, but there are clear indications that a much higher level of international collaboration among rice growers can be in the offing in the near future.

It might eventually be the case that the prospects for convening an Organisation of Food Exporting Countries (OFEC) - not that any such thing is on the table - reminiscent of the role of the emergent Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) decades ago, could highlight the interconnected nature of urgent food and energy issues.

Such a dynamic is reflected in current work to express a set of hemispheric values, in the form of a declaration embracing the key theme of next year’s Fifth Summit of the Americas due to be hosted in Trinidad and Tobago – “Securing Our Citizens’ Future by Promoting Human Prosperity, Energy Security and Environmental Sustainability.”

Thematic Coordinator for the Summit, Professor Anthony Clayton of the Mona Campus of the University of the West Indies, has been arguing that the major contemporary problems are “large and complex” and have implications for many areas of government and society.

For example, some of the early attempts to address the problems of climate change by developing biofuels have resulted in deforestation, net carbon additions and rising food prices.

“The problems we face cannot be solved by focusing only on one aspect,” he said during recent consultations with hemispheric civil society groups.

“It is essential,” Prof. Clayton said, “to find the policies and solutions for the main problems simultaneously: meeting energy needs, mitigating climate change and ensuring food security.”

He cites recent food-related conflicts in 34 countries, including Bangladesh, Bolivia, Egypt, Indonesia, Italy, Ivory Coast, Mauritania, Mexico, Morocco, Mozambique, Senegal, South Korea, Uzbekistan, and Yemen.

In Haiti, six people have been killed and the prime minister was forced to resign at the height of demonstrations against rising food prices.

The Economist’s food price index has been rising rapidly since 2000, Last year, it increased by 30%. Milk prices rose by nearly 30%, wheat by 80%, soybeans by 90%.

Production is meanwhile at an all-time high. The 2007 cereals crop, for example, was 1.66 billion tonnes - the largest ever – 89 million tonnes more than the record set in 2006. Yet, the largest grain harvest of all time was insufficient to meet demand. The fact is food consumption has been on a dramatic upward swing over recent years.

In 1985, the average Chinese consumer ate 20 kilogrammes of meat per year. Today it is 50kg. It takes 3 kilogrammes of grain to produce 1 kilogrammes of pork and 8 kilogrammes of grain to produce 1 kilogramme of beef. As a result the demand for grain for animal feed has risen by 200 million – 250 million tonnes over the last 20 years.

What we now witness is a global food picture greatly influenced by rising populations, hoarding and speculation, high agricultural tariffs, low productivity in countries such as Russia and much of Africa and the incidence of poverty.

Nobel Economics Laureate, US economist Gary Becker, has estimated that a 30% rise in food prices over five years would make living standards fall by 3% in rich countries and over 20% in poor countries.

World Bank President, Robert Zoellick, has also weighed in on the issue saying: “Food inflation could push at least 100m people into poverty and wipe out all the gains the poorest billion have made during almost a decade of economic growth”.

This unfolding scenario needs to be viewed alongside a blossoming biofuel industry.
In 2000, around 15 million tonnes of US corn was used for ethanol, in 2007 it was 85m tonnes - about 1/3 of the total harvest. The US now converts more corn into ethanol than it exports.

The use of biofuels has accompanied concerns about the disproportionate impacts of climate change on the poor who live in the most vulnerable areas.

However, the current move to biofuels is driving up the price of food – a situation which also impacts severely on the poor. Countries of the Americas have not been spared.

“It will take a sustained effort, over many years, to address the profound challenges facing the Americas,” Prof. Clayton said. “We must therefore link each goal to a clear set of targets, assign responsibilities, strengthen the relevant national and international institutions to ensure that they can deliver, and monitor progress.”

The Summit process addresses a collective regional agenda for achieving accelerated human development and poverty reduction, social and cultural inclusion, and a transition to greater energy security and more sustainable communities.

An OFEC might not yet be on the table, but concerted hemispheric action is firmly on the agenda. The Fifth Summit, according to National Coordinator Ambassador Luis Alberto Rodriguez, will offer an unprecedented opportunity to initiate collective action on the burning issues.