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People Should Control the Food System, Not Corporations
Published on
Monday, June 01, 2015
by Common Dreams
Why you should ditch the official EXPO and go to the People's EXPO instead
byKirtana Chandrasekaran, Stanka Becheva
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'At the People’s EXPO running this week, small scale food producers, farmers' movements, activists and researchers will discuss the real challenges of the current food system and the solutions: agroecology and food sovereignty – the right of people to healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound methods.' (Image: expodeipopoli.it)
For those among us interested in how we can feed the world, we would recommend a visit to the alternative People's EXPO instead of the official Milan (Italy) EXPO 2015, a massive exhibition supposedly aimed at bringing the global community together to 'make progress on issues of international importance.'
Twenty million visitors are expected at the EXPO 2015 in Milan, a €1.3?billion exhibition themed around "feeding the planet, energy for life."
Giant food corporations like Nestle, McDonald’s and Coca-Cola are using this space to hobnob with governments and portray themselves as companies feeding the planet sustainably.
The globalization of food production in recent decades – supported by unfair trade agreements – has led to corporate food monopolies. A small number of companies now dominate the supply of seeds, agricultural chemicals , processing, logistics and food production. For example, in 2011 four retailers controlled 85% of the German national food market, and three retailers controlled 90% of the food market in Portugal. In 2009, just five retailers controlled 70% of the market in Spain.
Why is it a problem that a handful of multinational corporations control our food supply?
Because the social and environmental impacts of this concentration of power are devastating.
Twenty million visitors are expected at the EXPO 2015 in Milan, a €1.3?billion exhibition themed around "feeding the planet, energy for life."
Giant food corporations like Nestle, McDonald’s and Coca-Cola are using this space to hobnob with governments and portray themselves as companies feeding the planet sustainably.
The globalization of food production in recent decades – supported by unfair trade agreements – has led to corporate food monopolies. A small number of companies now dominate the supply of seeds, agricultural chemicals , processing, logistics and food production. For example, in 2011 four retailers controlled 85% of the German national food market, and three retailers controlled 90% of the food market in Portugal. In 2009, just five retailers controlled 70% of the market in Spain.
Why is it a problem that a handful of multinational corporations control our food supply?
Because the social and environmental impacts of this concentration of power are devastating.
Full article: http://www.commondreams.org/views/2015/06/01/people-should-control-food-system-not-corporations
"We produce enough food to feed the world’s population today and in the future. What we need urgently is fairer distribution of resources and access to food dictated by need and not just by wealth and profit."
