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Food security in the globalizing world

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Law and Justice in the
Globalizing World
Article
On

BY-

Shailja N. Vyas
Ll.M. Batch 2020-21
20ml026
Institute of Law
Nirma University 1
 CONTENTS

3
1. Abstract
4
2. Food Security- Meaning

3. Conceptual Framework 5

4. Food Security at Global Level 6

5. Food Security- Indian Perspective 9

6. Efforts made so far 10

7. Conclusion 12

8. References 14

2
 ABSTRACT
The article sets forth all the contentions that examine food security signalizing to the
fundamental antagonism at the heart of the globalization project. The prodigy of
globalization is having vital walloping food system around the world. Health and
Globalization are intrinsically connected and, by reanalyze the concept of food security.
This article draws out awareness about food security and such connections, giving due
adherence to national policies of nations in the era of globalization. Food systems are
mutating, ensuing in greater availability and diversity of food, approach to this food is by
no means universal. These changes are closely analogous with urbanization, increasing
incomes, market liberalization and foreign direct investment.

In order to commence the understanding, first, it is necessary to understand the basic

concept of globalization. Globalization in this context means wading off barriers to the
cross-border movement of goods, service and capital, modes of distribution and marketing
and migration of peoples and labor. A familiar characteristic of globalization is a
concurrence of many institutional, legal, economic, social and cultural practices and
process beyond different countries. In the terms of food systems, changes are transpiring
the food chain from production and processing to retail and marketing.

In today’s scenario “nutrition transition,’’ the utilization of energy rich nutrients- poor
foods high in fats sweetened- is enlarge in developing world. The nourishment transition,
involved in the fast rise of obesity and diet-related persistent diseases worldwide, is rooted
in the process of globalization. Recognizing the link between globalization and nutrition
transition can helps policy makers to develop various policies which include food policies,
for communicates the global implication of chronic diseases. This article takes a dig at how
central mechanism of globalization works further giving a due insight to the incorporation
of market places affecting in the factors of nutrition transition. It also traces the policies
outlined to precede the globalization of the world economy in the areas of agriculture,
trade, investment and marketing frame dietary trends.

Disparity in power throughout the food chain helps to describe the need of food security in
the present times. To conclude it has rightly been said by Dr. Norman Earnest Borlaug
“Food is the moral right of all who are born into this world. You can’t build a peaceful
world on empty stomachs and Human misery.”

3
 FOOD SECURITY- MEANING

In the present era of globalisation, giving due regards to food grains and debating on it
gracefully is a typical marvel. However, food security is a panoptic idea but it is not
exceptionally discussed with more clarity in this global world. To get a better view about the
concept of food security some endeavour was made by the World Food Culmination in 1996
by defining the term. According to the definition food security was categorised as "when all
individuals consistently approach adequate, protected, nutritious food to keep up a
sound and dynamic life". World Bank characterizes food security as "Access by all
individuals consistently to enough nourishment for a functioning, sound life." The Rome
Assertion on World Food Security characterizes admittance to food as "physical and
monetary access, consistently, to adequate, protected and nutritious nourishment for
individuals to meet their dietary needs and food inclinations for a functioning and solid
life." Correspondingly, the Arranging Commission of India additionally characterized food
security as a circumstance where everybody approaches, consistently, to food required for a
functioning and solid life. In 1948, the UN Affirmation of Common liberties incorporated the
privilege to a sufficient way of life including food. At that point in 1974, the General
Statement on Annihilation of Craving and Lack of healthy sustenance articulated that, every
men, women and kid has a basic option to be liberated from hunger. Jean Ziegler, the UN
Uncommon Rapporteur on the Privilege to Food, calls it "a quiet mass homicide" 1, totally
because of "man-made activities”2. This cycle was conveyed further by the arrangement of
global meetings of the 1990s. Generally, food frailty is currently being viewed as the eye of
the tempest of interlocking public and worldwide worries to which it contributes and whose
arrangement lies in handling those worries comprehensively 3.

1
Krishnaraj, Maithreyi, “Food Security: How and For Whom, Economic and Political Weekly”
(2005);vol.40;issue no.25
2
Shah, Sneha; “Effect of Globalization of Agriculture- Food Price Rise, Hunger Riots and Spread of ethnic
vegetables”,(15 May, 2011),
3
Shaw, D. John; (2007), Palgrave Macmillan: World Food Security- A History Since, 308(1945)

4
 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

The conceptual framework, as shown in figure provided below, is an elaborated attempt in

illustrating the major driving forces behind the observed changes in food systems.

The figure features urbanization, expanding earnings and unfamiliar direct interest in markets
of agricultural nations as the fundamental financial drivers or forces, affecting changes in
food habits and diet. Notwithstanding the monetary powers, ministrant of social changes are
more profoundly being exhibited and being one of the major driver in the way food system
change, for example, more and more women are participating in working labour force and
progressively getting more active in preaching ways of living life. Going with these patterns,
changes in salubrious status and illness unhingeness is paving their way creating more
challenges. The connections between climate, diet and sickness are perplexing and impacted
by a few ulterior elements which sometimes are untraceable. Urbanization and its association
with dietary changes, wellbeing and health status (as mentioned on the lower right and base
zones of Figure) and a brief summary of the adjustments in the food flexibly chain (as
mentioned on the left half of Figure) is the essential focal point of this paper.

4
Cholidah, Sri. (2018). TESTING GLOBAL DIETARY CONVERGENCE.

5
Another poignant aspect related to food governance is that there are various powerful
corporations that dominate various sectors making the primary producers locked in tight
specifications and contracts.5 Further, there is gigantic course of utilization of agrochemicals
and pesticides including more usage of hybrid plants; changes in food handling that is
primarily intended to deliver uniform quality, size and shape of food items, especially, with
regards to the famous brands; and changes in dissemination and showcasing frameworks
upheld by PC frameworks for requesting, conveyance and improved corporate power over
business sectors. These food framework highlights are, as of now, well settled in developed
nations, and such are presently creeping into the nation’s agricultural markets, affecting
agribusiness frameworks, crushing little ranchers, making them bankrupt and adding to
expanding urbanization.

FOOD SECURITY AT GLOBAL LEVEL

So, as to set out upon a conversation of the globalization on the theoretical account of food
system and security, it is first important to characterize what globalization implies in this
unique situation. For the motivations behind this paper, globalization alludes to a decrease in
boundaries to the cross-fringe development of products, administrations, and capital- an
expanded progression of wares, innovations, data, money related capital, methods of
circulation and showcasing and partly relocation of people groups and work. 6 A typical
component of this cycle of globalization is an assembly, in spite of the fact that at contrasting
paces, of numerous institutional, lawful, monetary, social, and social practices and cycles
across various nations. Regarding food frameworks, changes are happening up and down the
natural pecking order from creation and preparing to retail and promoting. The movement
and profundity of progress in food frameworks are happening at various rates across areas
and nations, albeit all nations give off an impression of being moving a similar way. Nation
explicit models are helpful in recognizing factors that may add to the velocity with which
these progressions are occurring and their effect on the wholesome status of the populaces.
For some contextual insights nations, for example, Colombia, South Africa, the Assembled

5
Lang,Tim; Development Policy Review:”Food Industrialisation and Food Power: Implications for Food
Governance”; vol.21; issue 5-6; pg.555-568
6
Globalization of food systems in developing countries: impact on food security and nutrition

6
Republic of Tanzania, and India, having unequivocal time of late financial change and market
advancement denotes the launch of the public market to more extensive global exchange.

A major problem that strikes upon food security is the problem of global food price crisis.
This crisis is a resultant of the ongoing market forces in the global Village. The world
witnessed such global food crisis in the year 2007 and 2008.According to an edition of
Human Exchange there was an acute rise in the food prices traded globally due to increased
demand resulting into rising price of oil, rise in the prices of fertilizers and bio fuels, severe
reduction in cereal stock and other market forces prevalent due to the impact of globalisation.
Further the food rise spike can be seen as a resultant of devaluation of US dollar against other
trading currency, increase in demand of food grains and falling growth rate of cereal
production, harvest failures in the cereal production countries such as Australia Russia and
Ukraine. This global issue of rising prices of food grains further escalated reactions from
various countries by putting export ceiling on food grains and importing all essential
additional supplies which pushed the prices of food grains even higher. Another tug was
provided by the investors who sought returns only on commodities, especially involving food
grains, in preference to stock and shares resulting into rise in price of grains in the futures
market.

The entry of the antagonist in 2020 that is covid-19 the pandemic have alluded to the greater
cause of food insecurity throughout the nation's even the developed states like USA was
largely hit. In brief it can be said that the pre pandemic data relating to food insecurity rates
reflect lowest since 20 years but pandemic has reversed even little improvements made over
the past since the great recession. Alarmed by this sudden rise in food insecurity during the
panda mix various Nations together with organisations have mounted up their efforts to keep
the agro based industries safely running so that markets get well supplied with the basic
necessity of food and people can easily as such necessities despite lock down and
income losses. To overcome such crisis even World Bank has joined hands for the collective
action with the countries to keep the food trade on the floor. The reduced incomes of people
and high retail prices of the essential commodities have led various household to cut down on
the regular supply of nutritious and healthy food for their family. UN food World program
has even cautioned the nations, that by the end of 2020 over 130 million individuals could
face acute food insecurity. Not only the household but various food producers based in
agricultural sector have faced large sum of losses on various perishable food items due to
such shift in consumption patterns of the consumer. Further supply disruption and inflation in

7
the area of fertilizers and seeds as worked is cherry on the cake. During a survey, four major
Hotspots with regards to food security jotted down. these include: fallible and confliction
affected States where distribution of basic necessities and other logistics is difficult even
without complying to social distancing and other morbidities, countries that are facing
various crisis due to change in weather tests for any other natural calamities severely
impacting food production, those people who were previously insecure and vulnerable before
covid-19 crisis entered the playground and those countries who are significantly facing a
depreciation in the currency with the resulting impact on collapse of commodity prices.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United States (FAO) has in its recent report
stated that, it is the state of food security and nutrition in the world 2020, which specifically
triggered the problem of food insecurity in the recent trend. The report make it stance by
stating that there has been a continuous significant downward shift in the number of
undernourished people, all around the world. The report further, took a step forward, by
assessing food security and nutrition in the upcoming world and stated that if the trend of rise
in hunger affected people continuously then the target to achieve zero hunger by 2030,
despite some progress won't be achieved. The report also appended certain key points, which
are:

 The present estimates are that approximately 690 million people are found to remain
hungry which is approximately to 8.9 % of the world's population keeping in mind
that approximately 10 million people are adding up to the list every year and
approximately 60 million together in 5 years.
 The majority of world's undernourished people are still found in Asia that is
approximately to 381 million and Africa is the penultimate continent in which the
number of impoverished people are growing at a faster rate, which is approximately
more than 250 million.
 Another measure of determining Hunger is severe food insecurity index, which is also
showcasing an increasing Trend. Approximately one tenth people of the world that
equates to approximately 750 million people in 2019 were out on a limb at severe
level of food scarcity.
 In the year 2019 taking note of overall people impacted by food security at moderate
and severe level was estimated to be 2 billion people who did not got regular and
proper assessed to nutritious and sufficient food.

8
  The gender gap has also contributed to the trend of increasing food insecurity from
2018 to 2019. According to this the severe level of food insecurity was found much
higher among women than men.

FOOD SECURITY- INDIAN PERSPECTIVE

The International food strategy research establishment (IFPR) ordered the status of hunger
hanker into five classes: low, moderate, genuine, disturbing, and very disturbing. India falls
into the class of disturbing. The most significant angle adding to this advancement is the
non-accessibility of essential necessity of food.

India positioned 94 among 107 nations in Worldwide Craving Record 2020 and keeps on
being in the "genuine" hunger classification. The neighbouring nations of India i.e.
Bangladesh, Myanmar, and Pakistan also were put in the "genuine" class list, nevertheless,
their position was still higher as compared to India. While Bangladesh positioned 75th,
Myanmar and Pakistan were in the 78th and 88th position simultaneously. However, India
has gained some ground, especially since the institution of the National Food Security Act as
it is evident that despite population increase India improved its preceding years ranking as in
the preceding years, India, was seen ranking 102 out of 117 nations. So, maybe be in the
upcoming years, India could be seen emerging from such a tyranny.

Taking note of the situation in India, the lockdown, for over two months helped in restricting
the wellbeing emergency, yet — as in different nations — the total closure of all financial
exercises aside from fundamental administrations has made a monetary emergency and
hopelessness for poor people, with huge occupation misfortunes and rising food weakness.
The monetary stun has been considerably more serious for India, for two reasons. To begin
with, pre-Coronavirus, the economy was at that point easing back down, aggravating existing
issues of joblessness, low salaries, provincial misery, unhygienicness, and boundless
disparity. Second, India's huge casual area is especially defenceless. Out of the public, utmost
of 465 million labourers, around 91% (422 million) were casual specialists in 2017–2018 but
now are lacking ordinary pay rates or livelihoods, including several of other rural, traveller,
and other casual specialists are being hardest hit during the lockdown time frame.

9
 EFFORTS MADE SO FAR

In response to the global food price crisis, various top-notch meetings were convened with a
view to evolve an international response to such crisis. UN, in 2008, formed a High Level
Task Force (HLTF) in response to the global food security crisis that further led to the
establishment of a Comprehensive Framework for Action (CFA). In the same year, various
representatives across 180 countries, got together and met in Rome in the month of June, to
discuss the agenda. Following this, in the month of July, various leaders from UN member
countries again met at G-8 summit in Japan, to discuss about the support to be given to
smallholder farmers. They also provoked countries to remove the export ceilings, urged for
sustainable use of biofuel and further alluded various steps to curb the major influence of
speculative capital. In the year of 2009, governments of various nations, the business
tycoons’, donors and members of civil society met in Madrid, regarding their commitment for
addressing the problem of global food insecurity. Apart from this discussion FAO
recommended further ‘twin track’ approach to meet the needs of the society. This twin track
approach include:

 Meeting the prompt needs of vulnerable and assailable population by giving them
emergency food packets compiled with the basic nutrition requirement, providing
various services and inputs in agro based industries at reasonable cost, mapping a
framework to control macroeconomic factors responsible for the price rises,
adjustments in various taxation policies and trading policies.
 Ramming up long term resilience by increasing the level of food production,
managing buffer stock as well as food stock more effectively and efficiently and
extending social protection to the most vulnerable and food insecure people.

In the current pandemic situation with reference to covid-19, World Bank’s support to
various nations for maintaining food security by closely monitoring food and agricultural
supply chain in the domestic markets is a commendable task performed by them. World Bank
has financed various countries in getting out of such problem, some of which are:

 In Afghanistan, where Afghan farmers were facing serious problem relating to

disrupted planting, in the period of covid-19, due to which food prices of the essential
food grains were rising creating a shortage in the food supply, World Bank has

10
 granted $100 million fund to the Emergency Agriculture and Food Supply Project
with the aim to improve food security status there.
 In Angola, in order to help small farmers and cooperative in expanding and improving
their operation to meet the needs of domestic market, World Bank, thus, financed
Commercial Agriculture Development Project.
 In Bangladesh, with a view of helping various poultry farmers and vulnerable dairy
workers, a $96 million Emergency Action Plan was mobilized under the Livestock
Dairy Development Project.
 In Bhutan, World Bank helped the government in enhancing food production by
providing various input supply and irrigation facilities. It has also helped the
government in realigning its portfolio for creating proper food distribution channel.
 In India World Bank help in co-financing various women self-help groups which was
supported under the National Rural Livelihood Mission so as to meet the demand in
masks and sanitizers, also for running kitchen for feeding the community, getting
fresh food supplies and providing food packets and further support to various
vulnerable families.
 In Rwanda, World Bank helped by giving funds to the Sustainable Agriculture
Intensification and Food Security Project so as to provide full support to the farmers
engaged in horticulture who are facing trouble due to increased air freight and other
logistics.

There are also many other countries which are getting due support from World Bank. World
Bank’s role in cradling up from the situation of pandemic is highly commendable.

11
 CONCLUSION

The high predominance of undernourishment impacts affects both personal satisfaction and
monetary development. Yearning and neediness are still transcendently rustic wonders and
are probably going to remain so for the following decade at any rate. Exactly 75 percent of
the ravenous poor live and work in rustic zones. FAO‟s Projections recommend that more
than 60% will keep on doing as such in 2025. 7 Through This article presumed that nourishing
status was influenced by a wide scope of elements yet focused on that „poverty is the
underlying driver of malnutrition‟ in the set of three of food, wellbeing and care issues.
Dietary prosperity was affected by the supplement substance of nourishments burned-through
comparable to prerequisites, which, thus, was controlled by a scope of variables.
Dependability of food accessibility was a foundation of nourishing prosperity, and sanitation
and quality had a significant effect on sustenance. Different contaminations majorly affected
healthful status. The collaboration of disease and deficient food utilization prompted what
was known as the ailing health contamination complex. Ineffectively sustained people were
more helpless to numerous contaminations. Through this investigation, it is more profoundly
accentuated that the rising food cost has had a crumbling dietary result. There is a need to
move from the current costly, wasteful and debasement ridden institutional plans to those that
will guarantee modest conveyance of imperative quality grains in a straightforward way and
are self-focusing on. Prospects market and streamlined commerce. . Yield protection plans
can be advanced with the government meeting a significant aspect of the protection premium
to secure the ranchers against characteristic catastrophes. In the first place, all limitations on
food grains with respect to between State development, loading, sends out and institutional
credit and exchange financing ought to be repudiated. Deregulation will help compensate for
any shortfall among creation and utilization needs, lessen flexibly inconstancy, increment
productivity in asset use, and license creation in districts more fit to it. Nourishment for-
instruction program: To accomplish penny percent proficiency, the food security need can be
gainfully connected to expanded enrolment in schools. The privilege of food isn't about to
cause, yet about guaranteeing that all individuals have the ability to take care of themselves is
pride. There ought to be a Common Farming Strategy (CAP), which ought to be executed in
India. It puts this unashamedly as the focal creed. Most nations have a comparative

7
N. and J. Brunsma. 2012. World Agriculture towards 2030/2050: the 2012 revision, ESA Working Paper No.
12-03 Rome

12
arrangement. It is pitiful that a nation as powerful as India is on food security issues. The
legislature of India neglects to outline an extraordinary technique for estimating neediness
proportion during the post-financial period. It is so prepared to recite the globalization
mantra, to endanger the very premise of its security.

13
 REFRENCES

 Cholidah, Sri. (2018). TESTING GLOBAL DIETARY CONVERGENCE.

 Globalization of food systems in developing countries: impact on food security and
nutrition

 Krishnaraj, Maithreyi, “Food Security: How and For Whom, Economic and Political
Weekly” (2005);vol.40;issue no.25
 Lang,Tim; Development Policy Review:”Food Industrialisation and Food Power:
Implications for Food Governance”; vol.21; issue 5-6; pg.555-568
 N. and J. Brunsma. 2012. World Agriculture towards 2030/2050: the 2012 revision,
ESA Working Paper No. 12-03 Rome
 Shah, Sneha; “Effect of Globalization of Agriculture- Food Price Rise, Hunger Riots
and Spread of ethnic vegetables”,(15 May, 2011),
 Shaw, D. John; (2007), Palgrave Macmillan: World Food Security- A History Since,
308(1945)

14

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