Warning bells hollering the onslaught of a food crisis have been struck by the FAO on and off this year, especially in the wake of the climatic calamities afflicting many countries last year.
The Oxfam, in its latest report Growing a Better Future highlights the challenges faced in agricultural growth as well as the factors suffocating the already constrained food supply.
Bitterly criticising the insensitivities of investors for whom "food is just another financial asset", rich country farm lobbies, and self-serving elites who amass resources with little regard for the impoverished segments of the world; the report cites both supply-side and demand-side factors as wreaking havoc on the global food situation.
Use of food as biofuel, climatic change and competition for land from industry and urbanisation have been at play on the supply side, while a burgeoning global population - especially from emerging countries - and demand for meat and dairy products have become the back-breaking demand side factors.
The resulting volatility of food prices thereby, presents itself a very grave concern, especially bearing in mind the link between food and oil prices, with the latter expected to remain increasingly volatile in the future. Research conducted for Oxfam warns that international prices of key staples may rise by anywhere between 120 to 180 per cent by 2030.
Eyeing these threats to food security, Oxfam suggests focusing on alleviating the impact of shocks by devoting efforts towards climatic adaptation and disaster risk reduction.
Further, small-scale food producers in developing countries ought to be prioritized since prospects for productivity enhancement and poverty reduction are greatest for this group.
A harder-to-achieve resolution would involve bringing about a paradigm shift amongst businesses for a more equitable distribution of food resources - a step not as easily accomplished as touted about.
For Pakistan, the price hike forewarnings and the challenges to global food security present both an opportunity and a call for improving agricultural practices. Agricultural expenditure in Pakistan is less than 4 percent of its total spending, lower than that of regional peers Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and India.
Rectifying water allocation issues, better agricultural practices, tackling lobbies of big farmers, and helping small producers can go a long way in helping Pakistan - an essentially agricultural country. The lure of expected food price increases can be the icing on the cake for a country which needs to appreciate and bring in order, a principal sector which drives its growth.
Brazil is an ideal example of a country managing to battle with food scarcity and hunger. The country halved the number of hungry Brazilians between 1992 and 2007 - a feat many others, such as India, have not been able to achieve despite apparent economic growth.
A mix of adept political leadership focused on equitable growth, with a focus on small-scale farmers helped the country achieve this goal. And the citizens had as much a role to play in spurring this change; Brazilian civil society challenged political agendas helping push forward the call for a more equitable growth strategy.
There are warnings and lessons, indeed, for Pakistan to pay heed to.
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