A new EU agricultural policy?

Daniela Weingärtner fears that the emergency measures to help those worst affected by the current food crisis will offer only temporary relief, and calls for the complete restructuring of global agricultural policies: "A change in direction would require considerable political determination, because those who profit from the current funding policy won't give up their privileges without a fight. On the one hand that's Europe's farmers, who are only able to survive in the business thanks to the EU funding which allows them to sell their products for prices that are lower than those of their competitors on global markets. Over the past few years they have had to accept cuts in production subsidies, and now they're defending themselves against further reforms. On the other hand you have the political elites of the newly industrialised and developing countries that prefer to hoard foreign currency in their treasuries rather than implement structural policies that would fill the stomachs of their people."

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