Trade
Open, rules-based international trade to advance global food security
With the global population expected to reach 9 billion by 2050, food security will depend not just on being able to grow sufficient food, but also on being able to move it around the world quickly and easily to where it is needed.
Rules-based trade is food security
To move food around the world, we need to ensure international trade remains open and fair, and that countries all follow agreed rules.
Rising tensions around food security will require new, more effective ways to address challenges, including faster and more efficient dispute resolution procedures to maintain trust between nations and prevent escalations.
It may also involve restructuring the membership of international organisations and their decision-making processes to account for changing global influence, such as the rise of the Global South.
Without this, it will become impossible to feed an increasing population while simultaneously tackling climate change and restoring biodiversity.
%
20% of the calories consumed around the world have crossed at least one international border.
Source: OECD
“The post-1945 international economic order was built on the idea that interdependence among nations through increased trade and economic ties would foster peace and shared prosperity. Today this vision is under threat, as is the future of an open and predictable global economy.”
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WTO Director-General
Using trade to spread innovation
Fair and free trade is not only vital for moving food and produce around the world, but also creating the agricultural breakthroughs that exist today and the new technologies of tomorrow.
Cutting-edge innovations in crop protection and plant biotechnology will enable farmers in all countries to produce more healthy food – and to produce it in ways that are sustainable to our planet, to its people and to national economies.
Food for peace and prosperity
Managing the shifting geopolitics of the world’s food supply is vital for global prosperity, peace and security in the coming decades.
Future international trade will focus around countries building resilience by diversifying their markets, both for exports and imports.
This resilience will be vital for countries to cope with future climate shocks, or even just adapt to changing global circumstances.
International trade barriers jeopardize almost all the UN’s Global Goals, especially in less developed countries around the world.
%
In recent years, global food insecurity has increased significantly, from 25.3% of the world’s population in 2019, to 29.6% in 2022 .
Source: FAO