European Farm to Fork Strategy in the Time of Food Insecurity

Abstract: The field-to-fork strategy is the first cross-sectional policy initiative in EU history aiming to address the entire food chain in order to maintain and strengthen the sustainability of the food economy. The strategy was launched in a challenging period of global turmoil of the pandemic that triggered an economic crisis followed by Russia’s aggression against Ukraine in February 2022. This occurred at the time when the world was already dealing with an issue of a global climate change. Political instability became the backdrop for a discussion on the wisdom of introducing a strategy perceived by many as a threat to food security. This coincided with a time when the term ‘food security’ was gaining popularity in the EU context. The term has taken centre stage primarily due to political considerations. The discourse surrounding the challenges to agriculture, the potential for paradigm shifts in our approach to this industry, and the significance of agriculture in its most comprehensive sense has escalated considerably. The discussion is taking place at various levels, from farmers themselves to environmental activists and politicians. Unfortunately, the topic of food security has become a vehicle for political debate, which is often removed far from any real solution to the problems. In this article, I will attempt to give an overview of what food security is and to what extent the EC’s proposed strategy can contribute for its realisation.

Key words: food security – EU Farm to Fork Strategy – right to food

DOI: 10.58866/NPVW8996