#IntellectualProperty rights (both patents and trademarks) constitute barriers to entry for smaller companies and confer monopoly control over plant varieties. Commercial breeders argue that IPR would give them the incentive to domesticate new species... (1/3)
...of fruits and vegetables or, at least, to expand the market for a wider range of crops; however, there has been little to no increase or expansion (Dutfeld, 2000; Phillips McDougall, 2013). (2/3)
Meanwhile, the genetic diversity publicly available to plant researchers for breeding has declined by 75% since the 1960s. #innovation#WorldIPDay#WorldIPDay2019
See our report Too Big Too Feed: bit.ly/2Bg2Fd
(3/3)
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#COP27 ends, our quick take:
-Hopeful: agreement on loss & damage
-Bad: we’re on track to 2.7C
-Significant: 1st agreement to include action on agriculture & #foodsecurity
-Disappointing: #agroecology & #foodsystems deleted
-Dismaying: zero #climatefinance for small-scale farmers
It is a significant step to see the UN #climate agreement will officially begin to target greater action on the 1/3rd of carbon emissions from industrial #agriculture and make agriculture more resilient to climate change - @ZGoita
We cannot ignore that the world’s small-scale farmers have been shut out & drowned out from this #COP27 says @Million_Belay of @Afsafrica.
They demanded recognition for diverse resilient farming #agroecology, and #climatefinance. But they leave with very little
Devastating deforestation, immense land use, pollution, impacts on health, climate & animals from intensive factory farming are clear for all to see.
Thankfully momentum for change is growing. /2
But those same actors (and some new philanthropists & venture capital) are now pushing a number of techno-fix solutions. These are many of the same firms that already dominate sales of conventional (factory-farmed) products. /3
Few people will dispute that global food systems need transformation, but this #UNFSS is instead an effort by a powerful alliance of multinational corporations, philanthropies, and export-oriented countries to subvert multilateral institutions of food #governance.
/2
Once Guterres appointed a Special Envoy and the structure of the Summit was announced, the drivers behind the Summit became clear.
In the #LongFoodMovement report, we're reminded that the world’s 30 million artisanal #fishers and workers provide nearly half of the #fish we eat (@IPBES, 2019).
But with #climatechange & island/ocean grabbing, small-scale fishers & their communities are in peril.
Island/#ocean grabbing is likely to intensify as countries seek to solidify their influence, their #food supply chains, & their global sourcing and distribution networks. For example, in the #RedSea region, conflicts over fish & other marine resources threaten rich #biodiversity.
Meanwhile, in the South China Sea, said to
have some of the highest marine #biodiversity on earth, #China has been building airstrips, ports & other facilities on disputed islands & reefs, w/ the apparent aim of establishing military bases (cf. Ives,
2016).
NEW 📰 IPES-Food & @ETC_Group launch the #LongFoodMovement report | What would 2045 look like if it's still "agribusiness-as-usual"? Or can civil society & social movements prevail for healthy, equitable & sustainable #foodsystems? 🌍
"Agribusiness-as-usual" means a powerful few control #food tech & farming #data.
But civil society can fight back.
A #LongFoodMovement can boost post-pandemic resilience, slash emissions in ag. by 75%, & shift $4 trillion to sustainable food & farming: bit.ly/longfood
A 'Long Food Movement' can boost post-#pandemic resilience, slash emissions in #agriculture and food systems by 75%, and shift $4 trillion to sustainable food & farming.
Our partners spent 3 years preparing our report on the transition to #agroecology in West Africa. It was (and remains) abundantly clear how critical #women are to this transition 🌿
🧵Thread /1
"#Women produce between 40-80% of food in the region and playing a leading role in local #food distribution and street vending in West Africa." #IWD2021
🔎 But data measuring the share of food produced, processed & sold by women remains inherently complex & varies across countries. In fact, “quantifying the share of food produced by women involves making many arbitrary assumptions about gender roles in the production process.” /3