This is why governments protect their food supplies -- food markets might behave as any other consumer good but in the sense that society as a whole benefits from avoiding famine and the markets cannot guarantee this avoidance, food also functions as a public good. Public goods will always be subject to considerable regulation - even when competition is introduced and encouraged, it will be met with controls by any non-corrupt government to ensure its ongoing supply. Thus, food will never truly be subject to free trade, and any attempt to impose free trade on the world's food system will inevitably result in moments of disequilibrium and the attendant famine.
An Outcomes-Based Approach
When food markets fail, starvation often results (Diouf, 1989). Neoclassical trade theory views poverty reduction as an a priori outcome of increasing trade and thereby increasing wealth. Yet if poverty reduction is the ultimate objective of the global trading system, it should be defined and understood as such, rather than merely implied (Palley, 2006). While free trade may increase wealth, for this to translate into global food security requires that a number of other conditions also be met (Kripke & Mittal, 2007). The creation of wealth is one issue, the distribution of wealth is another altogether. In agriculture, landowners can create wealth and subsequently fail to distribute that wealth to the farmers who work the land -- this practice may have largely disappeared in the West but it remains common in the developing world. Indeed, Mittal (2007) argues that the current system of farm subsidies in the U.S. perpetuates a similar situation to the advantage of multinational agriculture firms and to the detriment of small family farmers. Free trade in agriculture fails to address this issue.
Africa in particular has seen poor outcomes with respect to food and free trade. This owes to a number of factors beyond free trade, but which represent strong influencers on the ability of free trade to address food supply problems on the continent. These include desertification, corruption, conflict and population growth. Africa's food production capabilities are diminishing precisely at a time when local demand is increasing (Feffer, 2007; United Nations, 2007). Dossani (2008) points out that the development of a successful agricultural sector is often predicated on huge landowners or massive subsidies, neither of which is present in much of Africa. It should also be noted that highly productive land and moderate population growth are also predictors of successful agricultural development.
With the correct policies in place, Africa can build its agricultural sector and achieve food self-sufficiency, as the continent has not achieved its agricultural potential (Thompson, 2007). What is required is a stronger push for food sovereignty. African nations must build their agricultural capabilities in the same that Western nations did in the past, by taking strong control over their assets. This approach does require competent governance, as corrupt politicians will act rationally by funneling outputs to themselves if left unchecked. Another component utilized by the West,...
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