Science, society and food policy

During the last few decades there has been a sharp transition in economic doctrine, within the context of economic growth, on the relative contributions of agriculture and industrial development. There has been a shift away from the earlier 'industrial fundamentalism' to an emphasis on the significance of growth in agricultural productivity and production. The focus, especially in the context of the present-day less developed countries like Pakistan, has sharpened with the rapid growth in demand for food, resulting from the increasing growth in population and the high income-elasticities of the demand for food. Coupled with this is the transition from resource-based agriculture to science-based agriculture. Agricultural economists are unanimous in the view that by the end of this century all increases in world food production will come from higher yields, i.e. increased output per hectare. This increasing emphasis on 'land-saving' technology to increase productivity and production has resuited from the growing population pressures on land and declining land-man ratios. Agricultural research has come to the fore in providing technologies that increase productivity and production. However, these technologies do not explicitly take into account the equity aspects of the problem. The extent to which the poor gain or lose from the introduction of a new agricultural technology depends on a host of complex and interrelated socio-economic and political factors such as the existing distribution of productive resources, access to modem inputs, the structure of the market, etc.

Download Full-text

Food Security Doctrine – What Has Changed in 2020

Economy of agricultural and processing enterprises ◽

10.31442/0235-2494-2020-0-6-7-10 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 7-10

Author(s):

T.M. Yarkova ◽

Keyword(s):

Food Security ◽

Public Administration ◽

Russian Federation ◽

Structural Changes ◽

Food Policy ◽

Assessment System ◽

Security Assessment ◽

Social Bias ◽

The Russian Federation ◽

And Control

This article presents an analysis of the changes that have occurred in one of the most important state documents - the Food Security Doctrine of the Russian Federation. Criticism of this document can be traced in many scientific works: some experts attribute the Doctrine only to a program document, while others expect it to be implement and control, i.e. much more in practice. An assessment of the significance and essence of such a document as the doctrine as a whole made it possible to determine its place both in the system of public administration and the degree of its significance in the regulatory field. Based on the findings, an attempt was made to analyze changes in the new Doctrine of Food Security of the Russian Federation, approved by Decree of the President of Russia No. 20 of 01.21.2020. Structural changes in the new Doctrine are highlighted, as well as a critical assessment of the features of all its main sections. The greatest changes were revealed in the state food security assessment system, and it was also determined that the new version of the Doctrine has a greater social bias. If there are positive changes, some omissions of the most important areas of agri-food policy have been identified, which, despite their absence or insufficient reflection in the Doctrine, can be presented and decided at the level of subsequent documents, but only if the Doctrine in practice will be a fundamental document of public administration and regulatory framework.

Download Full-text