In many countries of the South, imported foodstuffs are nowadays cheaper to buy than homegrown products. The reason for this paradoxe? First, a Senegalese or Indian farmer’s productivity is not the same as that of a large American, European or Brazilian cereal grower. The latter can singlehandedly turn out a large output at low cost, often at the expense of the environment and of local employment. Second, the agricultural industries of the First World are bolstered by large subsidies from their governments. What was justified by the desire to guarantee a level of production that ensures self-sufficiency and a steady income for the farmers, has become an absurdity, in particular the practice of subsidizing exports in order to market them. Productivity farmers compete unfairly with small farmers of the developing world who nowadays have trouble selling their crops. Moreover, the WTO that, despite the explosive food situation, insists on fully liberalizing agricultural trade is supporting them.

That is why Frères des Hommes and its partners are mobilizing to offer alternatives taking into account the different aspects of the problem: the development of farmer-controlled distribution networks that reach the consumer directly; sensitizing the latter to the issue; a national and international plea to convince the authorities to better protect fragile markets (through customs regulations).