What the heck is going on?
If someone evidences that smooth supply of healthy food is very important when a catastrophe as Covid-19 hits the marketplaces, then it’s a proof that food and agriculture are exactly at the same line when we talk about this industry and its global impact.
Farmers, and the network of scientists, governments and manufacturers which supports them, continually direct their energy and efforts toward developing the best growing and living conditions for crops to feed the population.
On the other hand, even during this unexpected crisis, today’s consumers are no longer satisfied with a blind feeding system.
Until quite recently, the primary objective of food production in Europe was to produce sufficient quantities of food at affordable prices. As the productivity of farming improved exponentially, the consumer increasingly took quantity and affordability for granted and began to focus more attention on the quality and safety of food and the way in which it was produced.
That’s why, enhancing soil nutrition and defending crops and animals against pests and diseases is a constant process made ever more important by the world’s growing population and the consumer’s demand for a safe and wholesome food supply.
The above factors do not occur spontaneously. They require supporting policies.
Has been seriously wondered by anyone how a small farmer can produce competitively when he is not seriously connected to the markets, when there are not consolidated policies to financially support him for unpredicted disasters or there is only forerunner support? Why to support him financially becomes very difficult, when his profit is marginal -or often does not exist- when the final prices of the products he sells are skyrocketed at the supermarkets and when he is deserted by every middle man in a distribution model full with great distortions and imbalances?
Perhaps the most important step governments can take now to advance agriculture and reduce cost disparities, is to make a comprehensive change in their perspective and approach to their policy which often fails to recognize the social, environmental, and economic advantages of modern agriculture.
There are difficulties some times to distinguish early the noise from the message and often a ‘garden-variety’ is far different from a deep crisis but the COVID-19 pandemic provides a turning point in national and global affairs. The severity of the shock and the degree of vulnerability matters now and many nations are far too close to their stall speed.
But we can only help and contribute by not stoking rumors or panic buying.
Our attitude must stand tall to help secure the long-term sustainability of any sector we operate because due to Covid-19 collateral implications there are potential downsides to the development of global food chains, this is not going to be a wriggles free passage.
On the other hand the countless emergencies generated by the virus, give us the floor to think deeply about why the international community was so unprepared for an outbreak that was so inevitable taking in consideration is hardly the first time we’ve faced global catastrophes.
The accelerated flow of goods, services and skills is one of the principal reasons for the most rapid reduction of global poverty in history. Improved access to employment, nutrition, sanitation and public health, added over a decade in average life expectancy to the world’s population but on the other hand the heads of the nations failed to manage the downside risks generated by globalisation which, if continue to left unmanaged, we will suffer escalating systemic risks, as they say.
Europe, especially, has to decide and take position to the dilemma if wants to be a self-sufficient region or an export-import region regarding production of agricultural products.
The answer on this question will lead to fundamental changes in the supply chain, to the ‘protection’ of its farming system, to the minimum profitability’s levels of the producers & distributors are involved in the chain and will shape the direction and the vision for the next thirty years.
No mention that an ‘honest’ answer will trigger optimization of the global supply chain model backing up with necessary financial initiatives and solidarity measures to support poor nations by providing cheaper food through a smooth supply.
Up to now, structural deficiencies have undermined the competitive advantages of the agri-food sector and the structural design of the promotion of agricultural products by ensuring the sustainability of the farmers between different countries and not through unstructured competition without reason which brings in privileged position some and in weak position others no matter proximity of areas and different indicators regarding legislation and economy’s status.
Now there is no scope for a fiscal stimulus for all. With supply chains broken and firm break of any social activity, to strengthen the capacity of national governments and farmers to protect and enhance food security and manage their resources sustainably, is a game-changer management.
That’s why strengthening the competitiveness of agriculture now is a wrecking ball which will ensure, on the one hand, the sustainable management of natural resources and, on the other hand, the actions for climate changes by achieving balanced territorial development of rural economies and communities, creation and maintenance of jobs.
Meanwhile monetary policy has been stymied as interest rates are already close to zero. Governments therefore stark focusing on providing all in need with a basic income to ensure (temporarily?) that no-one starves as a result of the crisis.
Although the idea of s basic income guarantees is undeniably a high ideal, from the perspective of the world as it was up today and seemed unrealistic only few weeks ago, now it is at the centre of every serious agenda and it will not face the same, insurmountable obstacles to a possible introduction as before. A view which is gaining momentum and based foremost on the belief in people after the global damage from Covid-19.
There are many views that have been expressed at international level both on the causes and characteristics of the Covid-19 crisis and on policies to defend.
If we want to delve deeper into the causes of the virus, it is a good opportunity to also take into account other aspects such as climate change and the impact on the natural ecosystem, the model of industrial agriculture, the increase in consumption and the evolving characteristics of the food chain.
There has been much of progress along with the use of rigorous experimentation about the transfer of pathogens and its relations with the climate change. Human activity but also the industrial model of agricultural production without rules, affects biodiversity and stabilisation of climate change.
This will shape changes of ecosystem and soar much higher rates in the near future due to rapid increase of global demand for agricultural products and food.
Food, energy and water: this is what the United Nations refers to as the ‘nexus’ of sustainable development.
Efforts to meet the world’s growing nutritional needs can occur -and this is the standard in many cases — in harmony with nature, the rural world and public health. Uncontrolled growth must be curtailed, and the proper relationship between nature and society, ecology and the economy must triumph. The global food system is in transition and crises such as the climate and environmental and the recent health one are showing the priorities we should focus.
An important element of differentiation between distribution models is their close relation with the natural resources, since the differentiated, qualitative and high value-added production is more environmentally friendly than the mass, the ‘industrial’ production.
But the dynamics and likelihood of occurrence of threats in food chain depend on a larger number of risk factors or drivers. You cannot be in a firefighters conference and no one allows to speak about water.So to running simulations to find the cracks in the system taking in consideration all above factors while an unexpected crisis hits, is not a thinking we can easily sidestep.
A fair, healthy and environmentally friendly system along the entire value chain, which should be implemented by all of us involved in the sector, should lead to the adoption and implementation of sustainable production approaches such as intelligent agriculture, organic farming, agro-ecology and stricter conditions for food safety, for our health. These values will be combined with a reduction in the use of fertilisers, plant protection products and antibiotics (more with less principle), different way of acting on different segments such as transport, storage, packaging, food waste, but also backed up with initiatives for the proper consumer information, actions and information regarding their choices and the consequences for the environment, nature protection and nutritional health.
Particular importance is the tribute to the role of research, knowledge, innovation and digitisation of agriculture in order to enhance efficiency in production to cope against the modern environmental and economic challenges.
Seems there is no wall high enough that will keep out the next pandemic similar as is the case when we talk about climate change or terror and other global threats. But we should not leave these walls to inhibit us from placing new technologies, promote and finance most of the collective ideas to cooperate closely and efficiently to address and solve these challenges.
By learning to prepare and cooperate we would not only learn to stop the next pandemic, but also to address climate change and other critical threats. Yes, rightly we are pessimists for tomorrow living in this crisis but we should forge today a sufficient ground of opportunities to become optimist about the day-after-tomorrow.
Not only to turn the communities around to heal the gaping wounds that will be left by the crisis but to take the opportunity to flush the inevitable toxins out of the health system.
The day after, to mitigate rather than aggregate any imbalances, this will be a great gain over the incumbent.
My strong turf is the Agro-food sector and I am an ambitious and tireless sponsor of the agri_culture with its wider definition and importance as per above description. But for many others, farming is often taken for granted.
We expect food on our table and clothes on our backs because we went to the store and bought them but, we would not even have these products to buy if it weren’t for our farmers doing endless hours of labour in unfavourable weather, financial and global trade conditions to provide these for us.
So now, take some time to really think about all that farmers give us.
Without them, we would not have our healthy foundations we have today.
A global network managed by institutes, governments and experts will prevent, prepare, and respond to food safety events and emergencies and will contribute to efficient prevention and control of spread of unsafe food through information sharing among countries in case of food safety emergencies.
After food has been harvested, improved transportation and infrastructure, better insulation of food storage facilities, reductions in packaging and food waste, and more efficient cooking devices offer the possibility of reducing additional energy use in the food sector.
Exactly now is the time to start thinking and recognizing the fundamental importance of the sector and building the necessary bridges at home and abroad to embrace, back up and appreciate the principle ‘from farm -to- fork’ to our life.
It is clear that the restrictions that have been put in place to reduce the coronavirus spread, are going to bring the markets into economic recession although is very early and hard to predict for an unexpected event of significant consequence and improbable nature, the outsized consequences on our businesses.
One concern already evident in the horticulture sector where situation has exerted strong downward pressure on the products’ prices paid by their suppliers so that it becomes impossible for those farmers to pay decent wages, or to provide good employment conditions for their workers -if any- or minimum wealth for their families. This risk is particularly high when food retailers’ competitive strategies are predominantly price-based.
In other words, the picture is potentially a mixed one. Let’s say and stick that there is a foundation of good practice on which to focus and build the future actions.
To cut a long story short now is the time to rip up the rule book of food chain and to turn uncertainty into understanding, volatility into vision.
There is a short term value in long term thinking and changing an embedded perception as big as this about the production of products and for the role of agriculture, doesn’t happen in a vacuum.
Provocative I say it’s been desperately depressing to watch as communities and governments have failed to tap into this energy has been unexpectedly created as a strong collateral effect to this global crisis. Negativity breeds negativity and always we should find positive slants in every difficult situation we face.
Progress beat the crap out of fear: every-single-time!
