The US is on track to export record amounts of corn and soybeans in 2020/21, although it has come a long way since it was considered as the “world’s breadbasket” in the mid-20th century. The US was able to dominate global grain exports thanks to a technological advantage but competition from other countries surged along with high commodity prices, a strong US Dollar and failed US crops in 2010 and 2012. For example, the US’ share of global corn exports has dropped to about 25%, compared to almost 50% three decades ago.
A lot of the competition came from South America, Canada, Australia and Russia. However, a new contender could further upend global trade flows: China. The country’s latest five-year plan unveiled a project to set up industrial farms in large agricultural belts to boost output and reduce food insecurity. The ambition comes as China was forced to import record amounts of food in 2020 because of the damage caused by the African Swine Fever, along with geopolitical considerations created by the coronavirus pandemic.
The US lost its position as the world’s largest exporter of soybean to Brazil three years ago and Brazil is now the largest exporter of beef and chicken as well. A recent government study found that the country fed 10% of the world’s population. Nevertheless, mounting concerns over deforestation are shining a negative light on food sourced in Brazil. A coalition of French NGOs filed a lawsuit against the Casino supermarket for selling meat tied to deforestation in the Amazon. Casino owns the largest retail stores in Colombia and Brazil and has been criticised for its supply deals with JBS.
Major commodity traders announced that a blockchain platform called Covantis was now operational. The platform simplifies, through digitalisation, the transactions of agricultural products, starting with bulk shipment from Brazil. The goal is to add more countries and execution processes later on. Covantis was spearheaded by ADM, Bunge, Cargill, Cofco, Louis Dreyfus and Viterra.
The UN launched its most comprehensive report of food waste this week, called the Food Waste Index Report 2021. The report showed that consumers and restaurants wasted 17% of their food supply, while the total food waste reaches 33% when including producers and suppliers. Researchers calculated that wasted food was responsible for 8-10% of global carbon emissions. Somewhat surprisingly, the amount of wasted food does not seem to vary across different countries.
The World Economic Forum highlighted that some good progress to reduce waste has already been made by retailers thanks to technology and a focus on resource efficiency. The Internet of Things (IoT) can be a great way to check on products and has already helped reduce waste through better temperature monitoring. Another, perhaps less cutting edge solution, is being trialed in Singapore: using wasted food to feed black fly larvae. The amount of food wasted in Singapore grew 20% over the past decade and some food is difficult to recycle. The black fly, however, can actually eat all types of foods and can then be used as feed or fertiliser.
The EU announced that it will look to impose a mandatory origin label to more food products as part of its Farm to Fork (F2F) platform. Environmentalists and lawmakers welcomed the decision and suggested that it would allow consumers to focus on purchasing more sustainable products. On the other hand, some experts warned against associating origin labels with sustainability as a shorter supply chain does not necessarily equate to a more sustainable product. Moreover, the concept mixes up many different goals, like supporting local farmers and ensuring quality.
Some EU consumers have expressed concern that Canada’s buttergate scandal would spread through Europe via butter imports. Consumers in Canada started complaining that their butter was now harder to spread and some suggested this was because of the use of palm oil as a feed. In response, Canadian producers said no changes had been made in their feed, as it added that using palm oil was a common and benign practice used all over the world. Nonetheless, the EU’s milk traders association Eucolait reassured consumers that the bloc does not import butter from Canada.
Another food scandal made headlines this week concerning the theft of sunken beers. Artisanal beer brewers in Argentina attached 700L of beer to a sunken ship 20 metres underwater to experiment with beer making under pressure. Unfortunately, just one day before the barrels were due to be retrieved, unknown divers stole the whole load. The brewer was disappointed, especially as he explained that the liquid needed to be mixed first, and what was stolen was “a lukewarm, gasless liquor that would be very difficult to drink.”
This summary was produced by ECRUU
