Abstract
This is a motivating book which argues that solving food insecurity is related more to the problem of food access in poor households rather than food production. While societies with rapid increases in domestic food production have had dramatic gains in food security, more food does not guarantee greater food security. In some fundamental sense, this is the food security dilemma. This dilemma can be resolved by identifying populations with poor food access and taking steps to ameliorate this.
A central proposition in the book describes any food marketing system as the need to move commodities ‘from the plow to the plate’. Although this central hypothesis is common to describe any food system in the world, the ability of particular systems to do this efficiently varies widely from country to country, and within countries and regions. Consequently, it is common to find some areas within a region rapidly modernized, while others remain traditional. Some cases in Asia and Latin America are remarkable because most food in urban areas is increasingly controlled by modern retail establishments, many of which are supermarkets.
A stimulating discussion in the book relates to the rapid economic growth in China and India. This trajectory is important because never in history have so many people been pulled out of poverty so quickly, creating a new middle class in both countries, with changing aspirations, dietary shifts, demands for more convenient transportation or more comfortable housing.
One of the book’s strengths is the detailed description of the complex relationships between food policy and energy by using clear tables and figures. One measure of the relative importance of food in a society is the amount of energy and labour devoted to producing it. Even today, in some developing countries, the energy spent on food systems represents around 70 per cent of the total expended energy. Thus, in some cases, food production can be an important aspect of energy policy.
One of the most relevant highlights of the book is that the coexistence of inelastic fuel demand and a willingness to pay with large subsidies, would keep grain prices very high. The main consequence would be that economic growth, poverty reduction and food security in developing countries could depend on the role of agriculture, the pattern of commodity production and the distribution of rural assets (especially land).
The consideration of income distribution indicators in food policy analysis is dealt with deftly in the book, not only around the theoretical difficulties to define income distribution variables but also about the difficulties to quantify these effects. Following this argument, the robust analysis links changes in food production, food consumption and externalities related to the use of fertilizers (and eventual pollution in land and aquifers).
A focal point in the book is that prolonged periods of high grain prices can drive up land rents and rural labour costs. The main consequence is increased investment in basic agricultural research and development, taking place after almost three decades of neglect. It is necessary to point out that the author is quite sceptical about the use of conventional policies (such as technological or human capital policies) and their effects in the long run.
The nature of irrigated rice cultivation in Asia and Africa constrains farmers from improving yields successfully unless the government supports key practices in the intensification process. However, governments cannot strengthen rice cultivation directly since farmers make key managerial decisions that translate productive potential into high yields. A symbiotic relationship exists between farmers and governments, where each party is dependent on the other to provide a critical component of accomplishment.
The book concludes that governments and civil society have been fundamental to expanding educational opportunities, improving infrastructure access and providing basic health care. This success is cited as a reason for developing country governments and their development partners to deserve continual support. However, these efforts will be successful only if political determination is coupled to ‘good governance, high-quality data, and analysis to illuminate and guide effective policy’ (p. 177). It is argued that ending hunger is difficult because it takes sustained economic growth that systematically includes the poor, along with public actions to stabilize the food economy in which poor households live.
This is a stimulating book not only for students but also for any researcher and professional working on development and environmental issues. The book clearly charts a new path in the design of food hunger policies and gives innovative propositions to the field using a multidisciplinary perspective.