Joachim von Braun ~ Full interview

Director general of the International Food Policy Research Institute in Washington

1.  In your view, what are the most urgent problems in the field of food?

The most important issue in the field of food is the high price. High food prices are an urgent problem especially for the poor people. There has been a major increase in world food prices over the last two years. Another development is the globalisation of the food system. There is a food system in operation now that requires a global response to supply issues. This global system is integrated in information, trade and technology. Sustainability is the most desirable development. There is a need for a sustainable management of natural resources on which food depends, especially water, soil, biodiversity and climate. Rich people don’t have urgent problems, except the massive increase of obesity. This is not only an increasing problem forrich and middle-income people. In other words, there is undernutrition and overnutrition at the same time.

2.  What solutions do you see for these problems?

The solutions are very different. To tackle obesity we need behavioural change and the availability of low cost food with high quality. The problem of undernutrition is a problem of poverty. It is caused by a lack of calories, of healthy micronutrients and protein rich food. That needs to be addressed by policies and programmes, which reduce poverty in rural areas, specifically with agricultural development.

3.  Are there any biotechnological solutions for these problems (from question 4)? If ‘no’, is there a chance for biotechnological solutions? Is there a difference between genetic modification and other biotechnological techniques?

Yes, biotechnology can and already does play a role. Biotechnology is an instrument to increase the income of farmers. We should define the role of biotechnology from the income perspective of low-income farmers, that is one relevant angle and the nutritional angle complements that.

Biotechnology can play a helpful role in addressing the long-term sustainability issue and climate change. It can help with the problems of drought and heat stress. There is also a strong link between agriculture and the energy sector: biotechnology helps facilitate the faster development of products with a higher return on biomass.

Lastly, biotechnology can be helpful for higher micronutrient content: plants that are richer in vitamin A, iron and zinc. Biotechnology offers significant potential here.

In the perception of many people there is a difference between GMO and other techniques. We have to explain this difference in the debate. We have to continue developing both techniques, depending on the product and circumstances. Biotechnology as such should not be excluded from the options to improve sustainability.

4.  Should biotechnological solutions be placed higher on the social, political and/or scientific agendas? If so, why?

Biotechnological solutions are already high on the agenda, they don’t need to be placed higher. But it is hard to actually influence the position on the agenda. We need to work with all stakeholders to facilitate this agenda setting.

5.  What are the differences between developing and developed countries (in terms of both problems and opportunities)?

Biotechnology is much more relevant for developing countries, than it is for developed countries. This is because of the emerging consequences of climate change, and because of the existing problems on food scarcity and food quality.

6.  Which developments/solutions do you think will lead to public debate? Where do you expect controversy? How should we deal with these controversies?

We have been in the middle of the debate for 15 years. We need to deal with this openly and with good information from the research community. It is part of a political process like any other new technology.

7.  In your view, what will the field of food look like in 20 years time?

I think the world food system will be much further integrated from the demand side, that is from supermarkets. The retail sector will be far more powerful. The system will also be more integrated from the perspective of people’s taste. Retailers will cater to a lot of diversity, it will look more Western. That was the most important point: a retail driven food system.

The food system will also continue to exclude people. There will be a large reservoir of poor people without resources to buy in the supermarket. They need cheap but healthy foods.

Furthermore, there will be a large niche of eco-products. There will be a large bio-food chain.

Small farms will still dominate the world food system, but in much more effective contract and co-operative systems, thereby linking them to the retail sector.

Lastly, food will focus much more on health in 20 years. The safety of food will be even higher on the agenda.

8.  Which statement/question/dilemma would you like to put to the readers of this interview? (We would like to use this statement/question/dilemma for the internet discussion.)

There is one important dilemma: The fast growth of income in developing countries, which will lead to a fast expansion of demand as in China. In principle this is very good, but this high demand will keep food prices high. The poor cannot afford this. What will become of the poor in this scenario? The dilemma is that we have a large portion of the population left in poverty and on the other hand a better economic situation.

The solution has two elements: The first is a new technological revolution (biotechnology could be part of it) to reduce the supply constraint so that we have more production of higher quality and prices don’t increase so much. The second is the expansion of public food and nutrition programs that support the poor.