Toespraak bij de conferentie ‘Feeding the world’

Toespraak | 30-01-2013

Your Royal Highness, participants,

I am honoured that you are having this very interesting global conference in the Netherlands. Thank you for having it here in Amsterdam.

Ladies and gentlemen,

If I were to mention three essentials ...

for today’s conference, and the four main topics you are about to discuss

for future political agendas

for my address today

... if I were to summarize and tell what’s really vital, I would use Gandhi’s famous words:

“Our salvation can only come through the farmer”.

Farmers are key to feeding 9 billion people in 2050. Key to food security. Key in launching a green revolution. Key to increase production, to promote sustainable change across the entire agricultural system. And also key if we want to hold – and I know many of want this - fairness and environmental care in our hearts.

Two years ago Kofi Annan spoke on a very similar conference we organised in The Hague on Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Change. Those who attended that conference remember what he observed.

He said: “most of us here are not farmers. Let us give the lead to those who can really make a difference in agriculture.”

Nobody could disagree. People see how farmers are the drivers for green change, how they innovate, how they can shape us a better and secure future. We can sustain a sustainable evolution. We are able to invest in that change, in many ways. We can be the farmers drivers mates.

All of us share a desire to rid the world of hunger. Hunger eats away at your ambition, your physical growth, and even your sanity. It’s a moral outrage that to this day almost 900 million people go to bed hungry every night or cannot go to school because of this.

We are here today to discuss what each of us can do to end this and guarantee food security. The problem of food insecurity is rooted in poverty; it is the result of an uneven distribution of money as well as food. The only remedy to this is economic growth. People need meaningful jobs and a fair income.

Investing in sustainable agriculture is the driver for economic growth that can achieve this. According to the World Bank, every dollar invested in agriculture has two to three times more impact on poverty then a dollar invested in another economic sector.

We know the challenges ahead of us in feeding 9 billion people in 2050 under a changing climate. Only if we increase our food production with at least 70 percent between now and 2050 will we be able to achieve this. Business as usual is not an option. We have to do two times more with two times less.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The last two decades in development cooperation did not deliver what we aimed to achieve in agricultural development and food production. It is time for a different approach. A paradigm shift which I am happy to see is gaining traction around the world.

In our efforts to achieve sustainable agricultural development, the role of the private sector and private investment needs to be strengthened. Farmers and agribusinesses need to be put in the driver’s seat.

This is exactly what we are doing in the Netherlands. Our agrifood and horticulture sectors can rightly be called topsectors. They are highly innovative and efficient and they are active in different segments of the agricultural value chain.

Our agribusiness are already working together with the public sector to achieve sustainable agricultural productivity growth. Together, we have something to offer for sustainably feeding the world.

Let me share with you how we are working with Dutch producers of seed potatoes to make the high-yielding varieties available for Kenyan farmers. Next to its maize culture, Kenya has a prominent consumption of potatoes. But because of phytosanitary concerns, the Kenyan authorities were hesitant to grant access of new varieties into the country. Unfortunately this hampered efficient and sustainable potato production and the Kenyans wanted to change this.

They requested our expertise to support them in upgrading the sector. Working together with Dutch seed potato producers, Kenyan companies and the Kenyan government, we ensured that high-yielding and safe potato varieties were made available on the Kenyan market. But more, we also ensured that Dutch producers will provide training to Kenyan farmers making potato production profitable and sustainable.

This is but one example of how we support small farmers in developing countries to develop into profitable agricultural entrepreneurs. Increasing investment in the productivity of farmers and agribusiness will be crucial.

As a government we invest heavily in agriculture and food security. By acting together, as partners for development, agribusinesses and governments can bridge the yields gaps that we see today and promote market-driven innovations for food security.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Our aim is not only to double productivity, but also to ensure that we do this with two times less inputs. This is not just a goal, it’s a necessity.

This might look like a daunting task but I believe that the agricultural sector, its technologies and its innovative power can deliver solutions.

One of our priorities in this regard must be to bring down food waste and food losses. In developing countries it will be crucial to bring down post-harvest losses. Almost 30% of fresh produce perishes before it ever reaches a consumer. That is why for an example in Egypt, we are working with Dutch and Egyptian companies to create smart logistical solutions to prevent food losses and increase safe food supply.

But we also have to take an honest look at ourselves. In western countries, 30% of food is wasted by consumers, retailers and hospitality. To counter this, I will put forward an action plan this spring to counter food waste in the Netherlands.

We have to support farmers and agribusiness to implement climate smart agriculture. We have to turn its promised triple-win of increasing food production, enhancing resilience to climate change and reducing greenhouse emissions into reality.

The conference in The Hague at which Kofi Annan spoke his very true words, has been the starting point for increasing international support for this approach of climate smart agriculture. Last September we organised a highly successful conference in Hanoi that resulted in concrete actions to implement this innovative approach.

We have to build on this success. The road now leads to South Africa. The goal is to have 75 countries to sign up to a partnership for climate smart agriculture.

At its core, tackling these challenges must be done by investing in farmers, big and small, as well as in other private sector stakeholders along the food chain. But being an agricultural entrepreneur is not without risks. Farmers and agribusinesses are confronted with significant market and price volatility.

The key problem is the fact that the demand is much higher than the supply. Food prices are sky high and the poor are paying the price. Let me profess: this volatility is here to stay and we need to mitigate its negative impacts. Working in these volatile conditions should be an integral part of our challenge.

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There are no simple answers. But international organizations like the World Bank and FAO have given clear directions. Calming the markets should be our first priority. Food security cannot be achieved in a single country. Governments and the international community should act in a coordinated manner. Unilateral measures are not helpful. Improve market transparency for example by publishing reliable statistics. Avoid panic buying. Encourage the consumption of substitute products, because the price hikes concern only a few commodities. Mitigate the risk of speculation.

All this point in the same direction; the private sector wields the power to transform agriculture and food production in developing countries and create food security. But they can only do so if they adhere to their corporate social responsibility. Investments in agriculture need to be environmentally sound and developmentally fair.

Before ending my speech, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to share with you one final thought.

I have explained why we have to put farmers and agribusiness central in our approach to agricultural development, and that climate smart agriculture and corporate social responsibility to make sure that we achieve this in a sustainable manner.

But I have not yet mentioned the crucial element that has made the Dutch agriculture such a highly-productive and innovative sector: education, research and extension.

Intensive cooperation between green education, agricultural research and farmer-centred extension has been a model for strong agricultural development. And it is a model that can be replicated.

To illustrate this, consider that Cambodia and Uganda were both ravaged by war in the seventies and eighties, and performed quite similar as agricultural economies until the millennium. But after putting agriculture central in its developmental strategy and investing heavily in education and extension of farmers, Cambodia made a leap forward since while agricultural policies in Uganda wavered.

My government is putting this lesson into practice in cooperation with the private sector. In Vietnam and Indonesia, we are working together with FrieslandCampina, local dairy companies, local research and educational institutions, Wageningen University and of course local farmers to upgrade the value chain for dairy products.

Dutch experts are helping to build dairy barns and providing training in milking, milk handling and breeding programmes. This will contribute to improving the hygiene, quality and safety of milk production. And let’s not forget, it will also improve its profitability!

Let me conclude. I started by saying that farmers are key to sustainable agricultural development. The private sector has the possibilities and the means to make this a success all around the world. That is what the ‘global collaboration’ we will be discussing today should focus on. Know that the Netherlands will be standing at your side to do this.

Let’s take the fair, practical and sustainable path together, which leads from food security and filled stomachs straight towards economic growth, jobs and political stability. The path that goes via farmers.

Thank you for your attention.