Biovision and IFOAM Messages

The UNCSD 2012 (Rio+20) must include agreements on food and agriculture that

1. ensure agriculture’s primary purpose is to nourish all people and communities both today and in the future with healthy, diverse and culturally appropriate food that respects animal welfare and the integrity of natural ecosystems at both the local and global level.

2. acknowledge that a transition to an ecologically-based, resilient, fair and fully inclusive and humane agriculture is essential if the goals of sustainability and poverty eradication are to be simultaneously achieved.

3. establish a working program under the auspices of FAO that implements the findings of the 2008 International Assessment of Agricultural Science, Knowledge and Technology for Development (IAASTD) report with the goal of enabling the implementation necessary to achieve sustainable development and poverty eradication.

4. establish an ‘International Multi-stakeholder Panel on Agriculture and Food Systems’, based on the IAASTD process and its objectives, that informs the transition to a green, fair, ecologically sound and humane agriculture through the provision of regular updates on Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology options that address food and water security within the context of sustainable development and which compliments the role of the CFS of FAO.

5. guarantee the rights of farmers to participate in decision making processes in all aspects of agriculture processes including production, distribution, pricing, marketing, standard setting, policy making and regulation of the agricultural commodities market, and empower them to exercise these rights.

6. ensure that adverse policies that undermine the livelihood and well-being of agricultural based communities especially in LDCs are removed

7. ensure that agriculture and rural development are treated in a holistic manner including establishing enabling conditions for investments for sustainable development in rural areas, which prioritize the needs of small scale food producers, indigenous peoples, peasants and the rural poor

8. recognize the value of traditional and indigenous knowledge and innovations of farmers and local communities and protect their rights over this and ensure their unimpeded access to utilize this knowledge

9. call for agriculture and food systems to be assessed in light of all costs and benefits including environmental and social externalities, the depletion of natural resources and resilience of the systems to shocks and gradual changes

10. ensure small scale food producers, indigenous peoples, peasants and the rural poor are provided with enhanced access to information as basis for decision-making; access to justice; and free, prior and informed consent for both policy development and implementation actions on the ground including issues that pose a threat to local food security and tenurial rights such as land-grabbing

11. ensure that Food Sovereignty and the Right to Food are acknowledged, respected and universally implemented.

12. establish a multi-stakeholder technology assessment mechanism at the global and regional levels that assesses the potential environmental, health and social economic impacts of new and emerging technologies based on the precautionary principle. Such a mechanism must be transparent and participatory and build the capacities of countries and communities in all aspects of technology assessment.

 

Original article published at uncsd.org