International G20 Agriculture Ministers Gather in Paris, Yielding Few Concrete Outcomes
The G20 summit held in Paris in June 2011 brought together the world's most influential economies to discuss a range of central issues, including food price volatility and the need for greater transparency and market information. However, the summit was profoundly disappointing, with much work still to be done to get the G20 members to agree to much-needed reforms.
One of the most significant disappointments was the G20's decision to do nothing on the issue of biofuels, despite their contribution to higher and more volatile agricultural commodity prices. The G20 refused to reconsider policy on public stocks, focusing instead on financial risk management tools. Some important issues, such as ending minimum use mandates and subsidies for biofuel production in industrial countries, were not addressed in detail.
The summit also touched on the need to invest in agricultural productivity, but the G20 did not make any concrete commitments in this area. The U.S. insisted on a feasibility study before even a pilot project could be launched for the World Food Programme's food aid pre-positioning program, and the G20 agreed to call for a feasibility study and the establishment of a pilot project for the program.
The volatility in food prices has proven persistent and has affected billions of people around the world, particularly those in developing countries. The volatility is associated with persistently higher food prices, and the welfare effects of volatility depend on the level around which prices are fluctuating. Export restrictions, while condemned, were not agreed to be governed by a multilateral agreement by the G20.
The G20 agriculture ministers also established the Agricultural Marketing Information System (AMIS) to improve transparency and market information. However, the four largest grain multinationals (ABCD: Archer Daniels Midland, Bunge, Cargill, and Louis Dreyfus) are estimated to control 75-90% of the global grain trade, but have given no indication of cooperating with AMIS.
The next G20 encounter, to be hosted by Mexico in 2012, may produce something more significant. The G20 Ministerial in Paris discussed global agricultural challenges including food security, sustainable farming practices, and trade issues affecting agricultural markets in 2025. However, specific details on agreements or outcomes from the Paris meeting were not found in the search results. The summit was focused on discussing food price volatility, which has become a significant concern due to higher volatility than at any time since the early 1970s.
The G20 held its first summit of Agricultural Ministers on June 23, 2011, in Paris. The volatility in food prices has been a pressing concern for many years, and it remains to be seen whether the G20 will take meaningful action to address this issue in the future. China holds significant levels of domestic stocks, but the exact amount is unknown. The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) is due to report on some of the issues at a later G20 Finance Ministers' meeting in September.
