EU Statement – Ministerial Meeting on Global Food Security Call to Action

Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

We would like to thank you for the organisation of this timely and important meeting and welcome the launch of the call for action.

We are in a make-it-or-break-it moment.

Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine has exposed the vulnerability of our food systems.

Global food prices are sky high, pushing millions of people into famine. Countries dependent on imports and those affected by conflict are the most at risk, including Yemen, Syria, Sudan, South Sudan and Ethiopia.

Climate change. Environmental degradation. The Covid-19 pandemic. And conflicts. All are playing their part in driving hunger, inflation and poverty.

The EU has been a leading humanitarian and development donor in food and nutrition assistance. And, of course, we will continue to do our part at this critical time.

Swiftly we put together a robust response, with both short-and-medium- term actions. From trade and agricultural measures to civil protection, humanitarian and development assistance.

First, the European Union has stepped up its humanitarian assistance, leveraging the collective action of the EU and its Member States.

Just last month, we raised a total of 10 billion euros for the Sahel, the Horn of Africa and Syria.

Our humanitarian response is tailored to different country and regional needs. The complexity of the global food crisis requires a flexible use of multiple tools, rather than a one-size-fits-all approach. Cash assistance should be implemented whenever appropriate and, when in-kind assistance is used, it should systematically promote local or regional procurement of food items. Where possible, support will be provided through existing social protection mechanisms.

Restoring well-functioning markets is also key.

The EU will continue to strongly advocate against export restrictions and export bans on food. Together with international partners, the EU will promote an open, transparent and predictable trade environment.

Countries should refrain from stockpiling key staple commodities and from adopting export restrictions or other restrictive measures on food and key agricultural inputs, which are counterproductive and exacerbate food security problems.

Export restrictions on foodstuffs purchased for non-commercial humanitarian purposes by the WFP should be strictly prohibited, and the EU will push for full transparency on prices through the Agricultural Market Information System.

Getting Ukrainian grain into the world market is another priority.

Ukraine is currently storing around 40 million metric tons of grain, and half of that needs to be exported by the end of July, to free up capacity for the next harvest and to meet the high global demand.

Russia’s blockade of the Black Sea ports, through which 90% of Ukrainian exports of grain and oilseeds used to transit, makes exports quasi impossible. Obviously, the most effective measure would be to lift this blockade. We support the efforts of the UN Secretary General in this respect.

Last week, the EU announced an action plan to establish ‘Solidarity Lanes' to ensure Ukraine can export its grain, but also import the goods it needs, from humanitarian aid to animal feed and fertilisers.

This plan is aimed at absorbing to the greatest extent possible the volumes that had previously gone via Ukrainian seaports. All transport modes are being mobilised to maximum capacity, be it roads or railroads. The EU is coordinating a logistical push to relieve the current bottlenecks.

The EU will implement these measures in close cooperation with its Member States, the Ukrainian authorities, the transport sector and other relevant players across the region.

The problem we are trying to solve here is global. Our solidarity and efforts to combat global food security are here to stay. These Solidarity Lanes are just the first step in a long strategy.

Food affordability is another priority.

The EU response aims at enabling low income and vulnerable countries to pay for crucial food and energy imports, while providing the fiscal means and capacity to put in place adequate social transfers.

Specifically, we are looking at the rechannelling of advanced economies’ special drawing rights, making use of existing IMF’s instruments.

We will also continue to support countries to boost food production and in transforming towards resilient and sustainable agricultural and aquatic food systems.

Investing in sustainable and resilient food systems implies less dependency on a few external suppliers of commodities and on energy-intensive agricultural inputs.

The EU Green Deal and its Farm to Fork and Biodiversity strategies will continue to guide our response. The Sustainable Development Goals will continue to be our overarching compass.

In this framework, priority will be given to investments in agri-value chains, with a focus on value addition, employment creation, sustainability, and food and nutrition security. These investments will take various forms, dependent on country context, needs and potentials.

Excellencies,

The mounting global food crisis requires our urgent, coordinated and unified action. Now more than ever, we must find unity in our purposes.

The EU has recently launched an ambitious and comprehensive plan to ensure food supply and food security in times of crisis which is multifaceted and designed to deal with all dimensions of the problem. To do this effectively we need to coordinate with all existing initiatives.

We strongly support the UN’s role and leadership to respond to the global food crisis in a comprehensive way, bringing together key UN agencies such as WFP, but also International Financial Institutions and other stakeholders. We welcome the work of the UN Global Crisis Response Group.

It is time for all to scale up our efforts. In the EU you will find a reliable ally and partner. Our solidarity will continue to be there, wherever needed.  

Thank you.