AdriannaShoemaker

18August2015
AXL2102S
MaryFawzy

FoodSovereigntyandCorporatePower:WhereistheLink?

AccordingtotheWorldDevelopmentMovement(2014),foodsovereigntyallows
communitiescontroloverthewayfoodisproduced,tradedandconsumed.Itcouldcreatea
foodsystemthatisdesignedtohelppeopleandtheenvironmentratherthanmakeprofitsfor
multinationalcorporations.Thereisanincredibledisparityinfoodsovereigntyacrossthe
globe.Productionanddistributionoffoodalsovariesgreatlydependinguponlocation,class,
andculture.Somecommunitiesfarmdirectlyontheirland,anddependonindividuallaborand
productiontofeedtheirfamily.Somecommunitiespurchasefoodatmarketsorgrocerystores.
Insomeplacesintheworld,allofthefoodislocallyproduced,whileinothers,mostofthe
foodisimportedfromothercountries.Often,powerfulcorporationscontrolthisprocess,giving
commonindividualsnoideawheretheirfoodiscomingfrom,whetherornotithasbeen
geneticallyenhancedinanyway,orifanybodywasmistreatedduringtheproductionofthis
food.
Interconnectedlayerscontributetofoodsovereignty,orlackthereof,inplacesaround
theworld.Thoseinpositionsofpower,bothingovernmentandinprivateindustry,oftenmake
decisionswithoutconsideringorcaringabouttheimpactthesedecisionswillhaveonthelower
classes.Individualsindevelopingcountries,includingmanyplacesinAfrica,facethisdilemma
analarmingrate.Itisimpossibletopinlackoffoodsovereigntytoonecause.However,lack
offoodsovereigntyisdirectlytiedtotheriseofneoliberalism,capitalism,andpatriarchy.In
ordertoachieveaworldofequalityinwhichallindividualshaveaccesstohumanrightssuch
asfoodsovereignty,itisimportanttounderstandthecontextinwhichneoliberalism,
capitalism,andpatriarchyaredetrimentaltodifferentsocieties.
Foodservesdifferentpurposesdependingonasocietiesculture.Foodissocial,shared
inacommunityatmospheretoexpresscareforoneanother.Foodiseconomic,bothlocallyand
internationally,andmanycommunitiesdependonhomegrownresourcesbothasnourishment
andasexportstofueltheeconomy.Foodisalsopoliticalbecausethoseinpowerhavemore
accesstolandandresourcesandoftenuseforceinmakingdecisionsthatfrequentlynegatively
impactthelowerclass.
Inmanyinstances,individualsareforcedtogiveupthelandthatfeedsthem.An
exampleofthisistheIbanDayakcommunity,wholiveontheIndonesianMalaysianborder.
Thiscommunitywasforciblystrippedoftheiragriculturallandfortheexpansionofoilpalm
plantations.Inreturn,thecommunitymembersweregivenalumpsomeofmoney,theamount
inwhichtheyhadnosayin.Thismoneywasnowhereneartheworthofthelandthatfedthem,
butthecommunitywashelplessinthedecisionmakingprocess(Park,White&Julia2015).
Thissituationisonethatshowstheharminneoliberalismandcapitalism.Theprivate,more
powerfulsectforcedtheindividualsofIbanDayaktoworkaslaborersontheplantationfora
minimalwage.(White,Park&Julia2015).ThesituationthattheIbanDayakcommunityfaced
isnotauniqueone.Thissituationisrecurring,oftenhappeninginruralcommunitiesinAfrica.
In2004,DominionFarms,anAmericanruncompany,enteredtheYalaSwampcommunityin
Kenyawithfalsepromisesbeforeforciblytakingoverthelandandblockingthecommunities
accesstowater.DominionFarmsisalsosellingthesameresourcesastheYalaSwamp
community,damagingtheirstrugglingeconomy(Grain2014).Despitepromisestohelpthe
community,DominionFarmsisoneofmanygreedycorporationsthatbenefitfromthedamage
theydotolocalsindevelopingcommunities.
RajeevPatel(2012)writesPeoplehavediednotforwantoffood,butforwantofthe
entitlementtoeatit.Theworldhasmorethanenoughfoodtofeedeveryoneintheworld.The
reasonbehindhungerandlackoffoodsovereigntyispolitical,linkeddirectlytoneoliberalism
andcapitalism.A2008UnitedNationsReportstatedthateveryhumanbeinghasarightto
food,andthosewhoaremalnourishedhavelegalclaimsagainstthosewhoputtheminthis
position(Olowu2013).TheUnitedNationsrecognizesthatfoodsovereigntyshouldbearight,
andyettheworldspoliticalstructurespreventsthisrightfrombecomingareality.Itisclear
thatwithcompanieslikeDominionFarmshavingpower,universalfoodsovereigntyisan
unachievablegoal.Thosewhoholdcontrolandpowerinthefoodindustryoftenmakehasty
decisionsdisregardingtheimpacttheywillhaveondevelopingcommunities.Itis
counterproductiveforindividualswhoarenotintegralmembersofasocietytomakedecisions
andpoliciesinthatsocietiesinterest.
 Notwocommunitiesareexactlythesame,sofoodsovereigntydiscourseshouldremain
fluidinordertomoldtowhatisbestforaparticularsociety.Discussingallcommunitiesata
genericlevelleadstoproblemsinproducingandmaintaininganeffectivesystem.
Unfortunately,powerwithinthefoodsystemisconcentratedinonlyafewcorporations(Loots
2007).ThroughtheexpansionoftechnologyintheWesternworld,thesecorporationshave
gainedpower.Technologyisdirectlyrelatedtoneoliberalismandcapitalism,withnolimitsor
guidelinessetontheinventionsoftechnologywithinpowerhungrycorporations.Private
corporationsoftencreateandusetechnologyforpersonalratherthanuniversaladvancement.
ErastusOdindo,alocalfarmerintheYalaSwampsofKenya,said,"Thecompany
[DominionFarms]producesandsellsthesamefoodswelocalfarmersproduceAndtheyare
notdoingagricultureinamoreefficientwaythanuslocalfarmers.Allthemachinestheyhave
arejustformakingnoise"(Grain2014).Dominionsusageoftechnology,includingmachinery,
isseenasuselessandbothersometothelocalsoftheYalaSwamps.Unfortunately,these
communitymembershavelittlesayinDominionFarmsactions.
Anothermajorexampleofacorporationsusingtechnologyforcompanyadvancement
isRiceTec,locatedinTexas,USA.RiceTecgeneticallyrecreatedbasmatirice,amajor
exportfromIndiathatemployedandfedthousandsofindigenouspeople.Afterrecreatingthis
ricewithoutthepermissionoftheIndianpeople,RiceTectriedtopatentthenamebasmati,a
namegiventothecropbyindigenousIndianfarmers.Althoughproducersoftechnologyclaim
ittobeanadvancementofhumanity,technologyisalsousedbyRiceTecandcorporations
similartostealdirectlyfromthethirdworld(Loots2007).Scienceandtechnologycatertothe
advancementofthewesttobuildglobaleconomiesattheexpenseofindigenousresourcesand
knowledgeofthethirdworld(Loots2007).TheAfricancontinentfeelsthisburdenthemost,
asthewesternworldoftenusesAfricaslandandresourcesasafeedinggroundforpersonal
advancement.Becausetheexpansionofneoliberalismandcapitalismhasbeensynonymous
withtheexpansionofpowerful,privatecorporations,ithasbeendetrimentaltomany
individualsacrosstheglobeinachievingfoodsecurityorfoodsovereignty.
Powerful,neoliberalistandcapitalistsocietiesoftengivefoodaidtodeveloping
countries.Thesedonationsareconsideredsavingpractices,butthereisblatantironytothis
idea.Thisaidisoftengeneticallymodifiedandhasnolabelsorpriortesting.Thepeoplecould
experiencenegativesideeffectsandwouldhavenowayofknowinghowthefoodwas
modified.Often,individualsmostaffectedbythisgeneticallymodifiedfoodaidarewomenand
children,aswomenmakeup60%oftheundernourishedaroundtheworld(Loots2007).
Althoughwomenandchildrenaremostaffectedbytheseproblems,womenstillstrugglefora
voiceinlegislationandpoliciesatacommunityleveluptoagloballevel.Thewesternworldis
apatriarchy,valuingmaleinfluenceatahigherlevelthanfemaleinfluence.Through
colonialismandhistoricEuropeaninfluence,patriarchyhasbeenadaptedthroughouttheworld.
Thisisdisadvantageoustomanysocietiesespeciallyintermsoffoodsovereignty.As
globalizationexpands,foodproductionacrosstheworldhasincreased.Simultaneously,there
hasbeenanincreaseofwomenandchildrenfacingmalnutritionandfoodinsecurity.Theonly
waytolimitthisproblemisbygivingtheseindividualsavoice.Foodsovereigntywillonlybe
achievedifthedecisionsleavethehandsofthoseinpowerinneoliberalistandcapitalist
societies,andareplacedintothehandsofthepeoplewhodependonthefoodsystemto
survive.Inorderformoreindividualstohavefoodsecurityandfoodsovereignty,political
changesneedtoincludeandvaluewomensexperience,knowledge,andopinions.
Womenasfoodproducersandfoodconsumersareoftendisregardedinpoliticaland
economicdecisions.Infact,womenoftendonothaveanylegalownershipofthelandtheycall
home.Womenmakeuplessthan20%ofalllandholdersindevelopingcountries(Park,White
&Julia2015).Besidesthestruggleforfoodsovereignty,womenindifferentcommunitiesalso
facebarrierswithlocalcustoms,suchasinheritanceandmarriagerulesorrighttocommunal
land(Park,White&Julia2015).InIbanDayak,theoilpalmtakeoverinvolvedaconversionto
contractfarming,andonlymencouldbeinvolvedincontracts.Duringthistransition,women
losttheirrightstothelandandtheresources,insteadhavingtoworkforwagesonthe
plantationwithnochanceatpromotion(Loots2007).
Womendonotallfacethesamebarriersorpositionswithinpatriarchalsocieties.Some
areabletoengageinagribusiness,whileothersbarelypersonallybenefitfromtheirlabor,and
otherscantevenparticipate(Park,White&Julia2015).Thismustchangeinorderforall
individualstoachievefoodsovereignty.Mencannotfullyaccountforthecontributionswomen
makeinproductive,reproductive,andsupportiveroles.However,beforewomencanbe
productiveinalegislativesetting,theymustfirstunderstandtheintersectionoftheirownroles
aswellashowimportanttheircontributiontosocietyis.
Ascommunitiescontinuetofaceharshcircumstancesthroughtheexpansionof
globalization,theymustemphasizetheimportanceofgenderequalityatahouseholdandlocal
levelbeforetheywillbeabletocreateanylastingchangeonaregionalorgloballevel.In
societieswherewomenareactiveinlegislativeprocesses,thereisavisiblechangeinattitude
andtheabilitytofindsolutionstotheirproblems,asseeninlegislationinZambia(Park,White
&Julia2015).Byhavingavoiceinlegislativeprocesses,womengainpowerwhenitcomesto
decisionsandincomeuse.
Inaworldwhereprivateindustryhasanabundanceofpower,manyindividualshave,or
areatriskfor,poorhealth.Processedfoodsarecheap,readilyavailableoptioninmanyareas.
However,thesefoodsarenotcohesivewithfoodsecurity.Thesefoodsareoftennotnutritious
andfilledwithchemicals,whicharecontributingtorisingobesityratesaroundtheglobe,
especiallyinthewesternworld.Thisisespeciallyalarmingbecausethesamecorporationsthat
sellthisprocessedfoodalsohavealargeimpactinhealthandpolicydiscussion.Toavoid
liability,thesecorporationsplacegrowingobesityratesontheindividual,statingthatlackof
selfcontrolisthecause.Thesecorporations,however,donotgivethecommonindividualthe
knowledgeorabilitytomakepositivechoicesregardingfoodchoicesandoverallhealth.
Technologyleadingtoaneaseandabundanceincreatinggeneticallyengineeredormodified
foodsonlyfurthersthisissue.Developingcountriesareoftenseenastestersforthese
products,oftenhiddenasfoodaid.Theseindividualsarenotgiventheknowledgetomake
importantdecisionsaboutwhattheyareingesting.Thisisespeciallyaproblemforwomenand
children,asmanyconsideritawomensjobtocontrolwhattheirchildrenareconsuming.
Astheworldbecomesincreasinglyglobalized,maledominatedprivatecompanies
continuetogainpower.Neoliberalistandcapitalistsocietiesarefeedinggroundsforpower
hungrycorporationsthathavenoregardforhowtheirdecisionseffecttheeconomiesand
productionofdevelopingcountries,aswellashowtheirdecisionsaredestroyingthelivesof
countlessindividualsandfamilies.Thesecorporations,invariousways,makeitalmost
impossibleformanyindividualstohavefoodsecurity,letalonefoodsovereignty.Furthermore,
individuals,families,andcommunitiesthataredependentuponhomegrownagriculturehaveto
completelyrebuildtheirlivesafterbeingovertakenbylargecorporations.Thedisparityof
wealthisahugeproblem;withthoseeffectedbythiscorruptionmajoritywomenandchildren.
Womenfacecomplicatedpoliticalandeconomicsystemswheretheiropinionsaredisregarded,
theycannotbepromoted,ortheyearnunfairwages.Womenfacetheseproblemswhilestill
beingexpectedtorunahouseholdandraisethechildren,whichincludesprovidingtheir
childrenwiththenecessaryresourcestosurvive.Thisisadifficulttaskwhenthesesame
womenfaceconstantinequalityandarenotabletomakemanydecisionswithouttheconsentof
amale.Withnopoliticalrestructuring,developingcommunitieswillseenochangeintheir
situations.DejoOlowu(2013)suggeststhatarightsbasedapproachtofoodsovereigntyisthe
bestwaytoempowerandengageallpeople.Therightsbasedapproachdemandsmandatory
inclusionofthosewiththeleastpower,however,everybodyatbothamicroandmacrolevel
needstobeinvolvedinordertofightagainstpatriarchal,corporate,capitalistsocietiesthat
bringdestructiontodevelopingcountries.
Beforewomencancontributetoissuesinvolvingfoodsovereigntyandhelptomake
lastingchange,womenmustfirstrecognizetheirownknowledge,worthiness,andrightto
equality.Onlywhenwomenrecognizethevalueoftheirlaborandwhattheydeservewillreal
changestarttohappen.Thefirststepistransformationatthelocal,orevenatanindividual
level.Thereisalackoffoodsovereigntyacrosstheglobe,especiallyindevelopingcountries.
Thepowerhungrycorporationsofneoliberal,capitalist,patriarchalsocietiesholdalarge
portionoftheblame.Arightsbasedapproachwouldhopefullyhelpgivethoseindeveloping
communitiesasayindecisionsdirectlyrelatingtotheirlives,whiletakingawaycorporate
powersimultaneously,creatingafuturewhereeveryhumanbeinghasaccesstorightssuchas
foodsovereignty.
 WorksCited
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ClaraM.YoungPark,BenWhite&Julia,2015,Wearenotallthesame:takinggender
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DejoOlowu,2013,GenderedAspectsofFoodSecurityinLesotho:Implicationsforan
IntegrativeRightsBasedApproachGender&Behaviour112(2013),pp.53785392.

GRAIN,2014,Harvestofhardship:YalaswamplandgrabdestroysKenyanfarmers'
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2015].

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