Title: European food and agricultural strategy for 21st century

Authors: Prem S. Bindraban, Rudy Rabbinge

Addresses: ISRIC – World Soil Information, Plant Research International, Wageningen University and Research Centre (WUR), P.O. Box 353, 6700 AJ Wageningen, The Netherlands. ' Wageningen University, P.O. Box 102, 6700 AC Wageningen, The Netherlands

Abstract: Production ecological analyses reveal great differences in food production potential and food requirement between global regions, which implies the need for redistribution of food between surplus and deficit regions. The surplus production potential, current production and trade volumes of Europe along with the desires of its society for non-food functions from its land, favours a dual agricultural path for Europe. It can continue to guarantee its own food provision through a food-oriented path of intensive agriculture, while cherishing a socially-oriented pathway to meet non-food desires. Europe can assume an active role in world food security by using its surplus potential to supplement the deficit region Asia and by using its agricultural insight to facilitate processes towards sustainable agriculture in Latin America and to support overall agricultural development in Africa. The prospects for the coming decades for European agriculture are so favourable that there is little need to introduce agro-energy or heavy subsidy measures to stimulate or revitalise agricultural development within its territory.

Keywords: integrated agriculture; multifunctional agriculture; Africa; Asia; Latin America; Europe; food strategy; agricultural strategy; food production; food requirement; food redistribution; food demand; food provision; food security; intensive agriculture; food surplus potential; sustainable agriculture; sustainability.

DOI: 10.1504/IJARGE.2011.040220

International Journal of Agricultural Resources, Governance and Ecology, 2011 Vol.9 No.1/2, pp.80 - 101

Accepted: 02 Mar 2011
Published online: 22 Oct 2014 *

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