1. European CommissionD G Development TOWARDS A EU AGRICULTURE AND FOOD SECURITY POLICY Brussels Rural Development Briefings ‘From Global Food Crisis to Local Food Insecurity’ 9/12/2009

2. European CommissionD G Development Structure of the presentation Current approach and overview of existing instruments Rationale of the proposed new policy Goals and objectives Possible areas of intervention Implementation issues Consultation process Calendar for the proposed policy document

3. European CommissionD G Development Reference documents Food Security Regulation (1292/1996) Communication ‘Advancing the Food Security Agenda to Achieve MDGs’ (2006) Food Security Thematic Strategy Paper 2007-2010 (2007) Communication ‘Tackling the Challenges of rising food prices. Directions for EU actions’ (2008)

4. European CommissionD G Development Main policy lines No longer simple delivery of food aid; but broad-based strategies at national, regional and global level focused on the objective of reaching Food Security for all. Linking Relief, Rehabilitation and Development with the objective of supporting the most vulnerable and protecting livelihoods while improving crisis prevention Addressing the four food security pillars : 1) availability, 2) access, 3) food quality and utilisation and 4) crisis management and prevention

5. European CommissionD G Development Food Security is addressed by a set of complementary financial instruments: Emergency and immediate post-emergency (Hum. Instr.) Transition/supra-national and horizontal aspects (FSTP) Geographical instruments - longer term (e.g. EDF/ENPI) Food Facility to respond to the food prices crisis (2009-2011) Food Security – Existing instruments

6. European CommissionD G Development Rationale for a ‘new’ EU policy Changes in the current international agriculture and food security context may require a coordinated EU response. In view of the 2010 review of MDGs, the EU needs to reflect on how to continue supporting the progress towards achieving the MDGs targets Challenges posed by climate change require a consistent policy response to focus investments and ensure that technologies, knowledge and capacity are accessible to farmers in developing countries. It is timely to reflect on how the EU could best use its experience to support regional policies and strategic frameworks in agriculture and food security.

7. European CommissionD G Development Rationale for a new EU policy (cont’d) At present there is no food security policy framework in place at European Union level. Need to reflect on added value of a ‘whole of Union’ approach in the area of agriculture and food security (Council Conclusions of 18 May 2009 on supporting developing countries in coping with the crisis) Existing frameworks insufficiently address “new” issues in the food security agenda such as the impact of biofuels and new technologies on food production; the role of safety nets/social transfers in development cooperation etc. There is a need for increasing the effectiveness of the EU food assistance on the ground.

8. European CommissionD G Development Proposed goal and objectives Overall goal: contributing to poverty eradication and pursuing the MDGs (esp. MDG 1) in the context of sustainable development. Policy objective: increase food security in developing countries by addressing in a balanced way four pillars 1) increasing availability of food; 2) improving access to food; 3) improving food quality and its appropriate utilisation; 4) improving crisis prevention, preparedness and management.

9. European CommissionD G Development Key challenges Food Availability  Inadequacy of national/regional policies  Climate change impact  Land availability (land degradation; other uses etc)  Water scarcity  Low productivity of crops/livestock systems etc Access to Food  Physical access  Economic access  Social dimension of access

10. European CommissionD G Development Key challenges (cont’d) Food Quality and appropriate utilisation of food  Effects of poor diets and malnutrition  Interplay of different factors Prevention and management of food crises  Price shocks and speculations on food commodity prices  Production shocks  Food stocks/reserves  Early warning systems

11. European CommissionD G Development Possible areas of intervention At the global level, improving the coherence of the international governance system. At the European level, enhancing the effectiveness of EU action. At the recipient level, supporting national and/or regional food security strategies. In terms of Linking Relief, Rehabilitation and Development: better bridging the gap between short- term and long-term measures.

12. European CommissionD G Development Implementation issues In-country coordination Synergies, complementarity and division of labour between European Commission, EU MS, UN agencies etc Coherence of different European policies Synergies between existing financial instruments

13. European CommissionD G Development Consultation process 16 Nov – 9 Jan: web-based consultations on issues paper http://ec.europa.eu/yourvoice/consultations/ Stakeholders consultations Jan 2010 : EC feedback on the consultation process (published on Europa)

14. European CommissionD G DevelopmentCalendar Jan-Mar 2010: Drafting of the policy document April 2010: Adoption by the Commission and transmission to EP and Council May 2010: Council Conclusions