CACCI urges members to adopt modern food production methods

CEBU, Philippines - The members of the Confederation of Asia-Pacific Chambers of Commerce and Industry (CACCI) are urged to assist their respective governments and local industries to embrace modern and novel food production techniques and the sharing of knowledge across farmers throughout the CACCI area of influence.

This was one of the resolutions made by the group during the recently concluded 27th CACCI Conference held in Cebu.

In a statement, CACCI director-general David Lui said that food security is among the topmost concerns identified within the Asia Pacific region and that proper support from the group is currently being worked out.

In a resolution, CACCI emphasized that in a short paper it is hard to cover such a wide-ranging topic, but sufficed to say that the issue of ensuring food security for 9 billion as expected in 2050 is a massive challenge.

“A challenge that for humanity’s sake must be addressed. If the world is not able to provide the necessary food, then simply many people will starve. Those affected first will not be the developed countries and not the rich,” it said.

The group advocates that governments across the world must allow and encourage human ingenuity to prosper and rise to this challenge of future food security.

“Governments must not prevent countries with supply from trading with countries with demand. Freely operating markets, underpinned by appropriate social policies and without trade distortion, will be the most efficient way to assure human survival,” the resolution said.

According to CACCI, policies related to food security should be based on a strong market based system which provides incentives to producers to increase production and to be able to deliver that to a consumer.

“The trade in commodities must be free from government interference and ensure that food can easily move between production and consumption centers. Trade distortions should also be minimized.”

It said that food security must consider the entire supply chain and allow for improved investment in the infrastructure along the entire process of food production to consumption. Wastage must be minimized.

Technology for increasing the supply of food, CACCI added, should not be inhibited. Consumers should be informed about their food supply and able to choose food produced across a range of production systems.

Similarly, food production should be a valued and desired career choice. Farmers are the most valuable people on earth. They must be able to generate appropriate returns.

CACCI members should encourage their governments to implement unilateral trade reforms, outside of the WTO and FTA’s to encourage improved trade and investment which in turn creates greater opportunities for farmers and consumers.

There are currently over 1 billion people who do not receive enough food to support their daily existence. While the world has enough food to feed everyone, it is not always produced and available in the places where it is most needed.

Accordingly, poor people in least developed and some developing countries are often caught in a vicious trap: they live in rural areas in a subsistence lifestyle where their time is consumed in a traditional process of procuring food and shelter.

Often they may struggle to meet their daily needs, particularly in times of extreme weather such as floods and drought. Often they will produce little more than their own needs but if they have a surplus, may be able to take it to the local market to sell for money that can be used to advance themselves.

Without money, however, these farmers cannot afford modern crop and livestock husbandry systems such as those in developed countries. This means that production is low, but with further inputs could be improved. /JMD (FREEMAN)