Canada, Germany, and the Sustainability of the Global Food System
Determinants, Challenges, and Recommendations
The global food system refers to the interconnected network of production, distribution, and consumption of food on a worldwide scale. Its objective is to ensure food security.
Over the last 50 years, continuous improvements in farming methods, new technologies, and infrastructure capacity in international supply chains have allowed for a more affordable and safer food supply for an increasing global population. This has fostered domestic and foreign political stability.
Fueled by the liberalization of exchanges and the rise of agri-food giants, and under the influence of cheap fossil fuels and mineral fertilizers, agricultural systems worldwide have converged towards industrial agriculture to feed a growing population that is also adopting similar food habits. Globalization and large-scale public policies have enabled billions of people to escape food insecurity, mostly in low- and middle-income countries.
However, food security has come at a large environmental cost and has not always been successful in terms of equity. Particularly in Western countries, unhealthy and unsustainable diets are becoming the norm, while producers are caught in the crossfire between more stringent environmental policies and the economic push for competitiveness in international markets.