Food Price Inflation and Food Security: A Morocco case study

The report examines the relationship between food price inflation, food security, and trade policy, using Morocco as a case study. It analyzes the drivers of global food price spikes and evaluates Morocco's 'Green Morocco Plan' and its 'guided liberalization' strategy. A specific focus is placed on the lentil market, where high import tariffs on Canadian lentils are argued to encourage irregular trade and increase costs for consumers. The document suggests that reducing these tariffs, combined with targeted social safety nets and productivity investments, could improve food security and accessibility for the Moroccan population.

• Morocco's agricultural sector is characterized by a duality between modern, competitive commercial farming and small-scale farming of a 'social' character, with 40 per cent of farms being social in nature despite occupying only 8 per cent of the total harvested area.
• Morocco is highly vulnerable to environmental variability; only 15 per cent of its agricultural land is irrigated, and annual rainfall fluctuations account for 75 per cent of the year-to-year variability in Moroccan GDP.
• The Green Morocco Plan, launched in 2008, aims to double the value added of agricultural production within a decade by overhauling cropping patterns, land tenure, and taxation, while combating rural poverty through two distinct pillars.
• Morocco maintains some of the highest agricultural import tariffs globally, with ad valorem rates reaching as high as 304 per cent in 2009, which may strain the population's ability to afford food as prices inflate.
• Canadian lentils account for 95–97 per cent of Moroccan lentil imports, but a 49 per cent most-favoured nation (MFN) tariff contributes to inflated consumer prices.
• High tariffs and global price increases have incentivized irregular trade; it is estimated that 80 per cent of Canadian lentils enter the Moroccan market through third countries or informal routes, particularly via the Spanish free trade zones of Ceuta and Melilla.
• A welfare analysis indicates that eliminating the tariff on Canadian lentil imports would create a consumer surplus estimated at CAD$3.45 million, including the removal of a CAD$135,000 deadweight loss.
• Global food price inflation is driven by a confluence of factors, including growing demand from developing countries, energy prices, biofuels, weather-related production shortfalls, low stock levels, and financial market speculation.
• Food price inflation disproportionately affects the poorest households, who spend approximately 75 per cent of their income on staple foods, often leading to the adoption of coping strategies such as skipping meals or switching to less nutritious food.
• There is a documented correlation between rising food prices and social unrest, with food riots erupting in 48 countries during the 2007–2008 crisis.
• Morocco's 'guided liberalization' strategy seeks a progressive transition to trade openness that balances economic efficiency with social safety nets to protect small-scale farmers from the negative impacts of liberalization.
• Climate change is expected to increase the probability of crop failure in rainfed areas of Morocco, where 85 per cent of agricultural land lacks irrigation.

APA

Huppé, G. A., Shaw, S., Dion, J., & Voora, V. (2013). Food Price Inflation and Food Security: A Morocco case study. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/food_price_inflation_morocco.pdf

Chicago

Huppé, Gabriel A., Sabrina Shaw, Jason Dion, and Vivek Voora. Food Price Inflation and Food Security: A Morocco case study. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2013. https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/food_price_inflation_morocco.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Huppé |first1=Gabriel A. |last2=Shaw |first2=Sabrina |last3=Dion |first3=Jason |last4=Voora |first4=Vivek |title=Food Price Inflation and Food Security: A Morocco case study |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=January 2013 |url=https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/food_price_inflation_morocco.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{hupp2013food, author = {Huppé, Gabriel A. and Shaw, Sabrina and Dion, Jason and Voora, Vivek}, title = {{Food Price Inflation and Food Security: A Morocco case study}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2013}, month = jan, url = {https://www.iisd.org/system/files/publications/food_price_inflation_morocco.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }