The food sovereignty is a Concept developed and presented for the first time by Via Campesina at the time of the Summit of the food organized by FAO to Rome in 1996. It has had for summer taken again and specified by the altermondialists at the time of the various Worldwide social forums.

The food sovereignty is presented as an international law which leaves the possibility with the countries or the groups of country to set up the agricultural policies the best adapted to their populations without they being able to have an negative impact on the populations of other countries. Food sovereignty is thus a rupture compared to the current organization of the agricultural markets implemented by OMC.

Complementary to the concept of Food safety which relates to the quantity of food available, the access of the popupations to those, the biological use of food and the problems of the prevention and management of the crises, food sovereignty grants in more one importance to the social conditions and environmental of production of food. She preaches a more equitable access to the ground for the poor peasants, the means so necessary of a Land reform and mechanisms of security of the rights of use of the land one.

At the local level, food sovereignty supports the maintenance of an agriculture of proximity intended in priority to feed the regional and national markets. The food crops and the family agriculture of small scales doivente to be favoured, because of their greater economic efficiency, social and environmental, compared with industrial agriculture and the plantations of large scales where work of many employees. The place and the role of the women are privileged.

Food sovereignty privileges agricultural techniques which support the autonomy of the peasants. It is thus favorable to the Organic farming and the country Agriculture. She refuses the use of the transgenic plants in agriculture.

International business

It is also favorable so that the African developing countries, which suffer from the subsidized imports from the developed countries (especially the USA and Europe, of which France) can protect their interior market, in spite of the agreements of free trade of OMC.

This concept relates to in particular the protectionist agricultural policy European, American and Japanese. The Peasant confederation criticizes the export subsidies of the countries of North, which make it possible to sell outside at a low price the production costs, preventing the survival of the peasants of the " Sud".

Food sovereignty preaches an international business right which

  • authorizes public supports for the peasants, provided that they are not useful directly or indirectly to export at low prices with the production costs (Dumping),
  • guarantees a level of sufficiently remunerative farm price so that the poor farmers can invest and to leave misery, thanks to regional and international agreements of control of the production (trust of producers like practices it OPEC)
  • authorizes the various countries or groups of country to be set up, if need be, of the suitable tariff barriers in order to develop their own agricultural sector.
  • considers that the satisfaction of the food needs for the whole of humanity is a priority of first order and an essential condition of peace and the democracy, whereas more than 800 million human beings suffer daily from the hunger, which highlights the obvious violation of the Universal declaration of the Human rights of 1948 by the majority of the states.

Criticisms of the concept of food sovereignty

The néolibéraux theorists stress that, if it were essential in the international commercial mode, it could be harmful for many developing countries. Indeed, these countries have often only agricultural exports (because in much of case it is the only economic sector where they have comparative advantages) to hope to sufficient draw resources to finance their development process. Several research recognized that the liberalization of the agricultural markets of North could contribute enormously to the development of the countries of the South and their fight against poverty. For two thirds of the poor of the developing countries which are in the rural areas exports to North could be an important lever to leave poverty.

However these arguments resist badly a serene analysis of realities: the situation of the poor farmers everywhere and quickly progressively degraded world expansion of the " free échange" , and the number of human beings which suffer from the hunger and malnutrition does not cease increasing. The primary reason of this situation, is that the poor farmers in the countries has low incomes, cannot be competitive with contractors largely subsidized and supported by states having incomes much higher.

It would also be advisable not to forget that in Western Europe, in the USA, but also in Taiwan or in South Korea, the national food production and the food need satisfaction of the population were and are still today in the center of the public policies of safety and development.

The concept of food sovereignty makes the object of a critical reflection within the country movement and altermondialist. One can indeed reproach this concept for being too much centered on the national and international dimension of the problem and for leaving side local dimension and his articulation with the other levels. One can also consider it regrettable that the concept is primarily defined compared to the problems of the agricultural production and the breeding, whereas the food question touches many other fields like the management of the forests, the fishing resources, water. This question thus does not relate to only the farmers, but the whole of our companies.

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