trade and people’s food sovereignty

The report critiques the impact of trade liberalisation and corporate control on global food security, advocating for a shift toward localised, sustainable food systems and the recognition of food sovereignty as a fundamental right.

• The World Trade Organisation's (WTO) Agreement on Agriculture (AoA) has contributed to rising food import costs in developing nations. A study of 14 country case studies showed that food import costs from 1995-98 exceeded 1990-94 levels in all cases, with increases ranging from 30 percent in Senegal to 168 percent in India.
• Trade liberalisation and the 'dumping' of surplus produce undermine small-scale farming and rural employment. In Sri Lanka, the AoA led to a surge of imports and a decline in domestic crop production, resulting in the loss of 300,000 rural jobs from the reduction of onion and potato production alone.
• Export-led development, often mandated by IMF and World Bank loan conditions, leads to land concentration and displacement of subsistence farmers. Examples include Cambodia, where 10-15 percent of farmers became landless after 1989, and the Philippines, where 700,000 agricultural jobs were lost since 1996.
• A small number of transnational corporations (TNCs) dominate the global food system, controlling the majority of trade in key commodities. For instance, six TNCs account for 85 percent of the world grain trade, and three companies—Cargill, Pioneer, and CP-DeKalb—control 70 percent of the Asian seed market.
• Industrial agriculture has caused a significant loss of biodiversity, with 75 percent of the genetic diversity of agricultural crops lost since 1900. This is attributed to land conversion, agro-chemical use, and the replacement of diverse ecosystems with simplified systems of a few crops.
• Long-distance food trade increases environmental pollution and global warming. In the US, food travels an average of 1,200 miles between producer and consumer, while air-freighted vegetables into Britain increased by 15 percent between 1993-1994.
• The WTO's Agreement on Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) undermines the rights of farmers and Indigenous Peoples to access and exchange seeds by allowing corporations to patent life forms and plant varieties.

APA

Friends of the Earth International (2003). trade and people’s food sovereignty. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/newfinallowres.pdf

Chicago

Friends of the Earth International. trade and people’s food sovereignty. 2003. https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/newfinallowres.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Friends of the Earth International |title=trade and people’s food sovereignty |date=April 2003 |url=https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/newfinallowres.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{friendsoftheearthinternational2003trade, author = {{Friends of the Earth International}}, title = {{trade and people’s food sovereignty}}, institution = {Friends of the Earth International}, year = {2003}, month = apr, url = {https://www.foei.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/newfinallowres.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }