Food Security and Global Agri-Food Trade

Abstract

This chapter examines the role of agri-food trade in the provision of global food security. We first define the changing conceptual basis of food security, and give a brief description of the status of global food security. Next we evaluate the role of agricultural trade across each dimension of food security. The chapter ends with a comprehensive investigation of the links between global trade policy and food security. We conclude that agri-food trade is one of the most important drivers of global food security, contributing to food availability, access, utilization and stability. However, since developed and developing countries have different economic priorities, they are not in favor of liberalization of global agri-food trade. This was partly the reason for poor progress of the WTO Doha Round discussions. It is clear from our results that the global food system has significantly changed since the launch of the Doha Round, posing new challenges for policymakers in pursuing global food security.