Food vs. fuel - The role of the media in securing the right to food

The many constitutive factors of global and regional food security vary greatly in the degree and the time in which politicians and other decision-makers can influence them.

The feasibility, for example, of preventing climate-induced crop failure or the rising meat consumption is very limited in the short term. However, there could be political answers to the growing competition between the production of food and biofuels and the crop speculation additionally fueled by this competition.

The workshop will start with a presentation of the latest data on the rising use of food plants as well as agricultural land for the production of biofuels. Furthermore, there will be an analysis of the relationship between a growing market for biofuels, the relatively new phenomenon of land grabbing by foreign agribusiness companies – for example in Africa – and crop speculation. The United Nations estimates that the biofuel demand will be responsible for as much as a 40% jump in food prices over the coming decade. Besides this global view, the workshop will also look at the local level to show the impact on local food security when, for example, small farmers are pushed away by large producers of biofuels.

In the second part of the workshop, there will be a discussion on (political) projects and rules that foster the production of biofuels to the detriment of food production, followed by a debate on how to prevent or adapt these projects and rules. Particular emphasis will be put on discussing the options of local, national and international media to advancing positive developments in order to help to make the right to food become a reality.

Moderation:
Klemens van de Sand
Board member of Germanwatch and member of the Development and Peace Foundation’s Advisory Board

Panelists:
Thomas Deve
Southern Africa regional coordinator United Nations Millenium Campaign

Bärbel Dieckmann
President of Deutsche Welthungerhilfe

Uwe Fritsche
Scientist at Oeko-Institut Darmstadt

Vineet C. Raswant
Senior Technical Advisor, International Fund for Agricultural Development