As water and nutrition security becomes further challenged, the United States must better coordinate agriculture, nutrition, and water development policy in order to adequately respond to increasing pressures.
Soybean has been the fastest growing crop for the last 20 years. Despite soybeans having a long history in Africa, soybean yields have increased very little over the last half century, especially when compared to the U.S. and Brazil.
The Global Food and Agriculture Program aims to inform the development of US policy on global agricultural development and food security by raising awareness and providing resources, information, and policy analysis to the US Administration, Congress, and interested experts and organizations.
The Global Food and Agriculture Program is housed within the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, an independent, nonpartisan organization that provides insight – and influences the public discourse – on critical global issues. The Council on Global Affairs convenes leading global voices and conducts independent research to bring clarity and offer solutions to challenges and opportunities across the globe. The Council is committed to engaging the public and raising global awareness of issues that transcend borders and transform how people, business, and governments engage the world.
Support for the Global Food and Agriculture Program is generously provided by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
The development of products tailored to address the risk management needs of African smallholder farmers has received a lot of attention in recent years.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the creation of the first ever Regional Hubs for Risk Adaptation and Mitigation to Climate Change at seven locations around the country.
The Chicago Council on Global Affairs is now accepting applications from students to participate in the Global Food Security Symposium 2014 Next Generation Delegation.
Passage of the 2014 farm bill ends a frustrating two-year legislative journey, largely driven by a search for significant budget reductions, and often fueled by polarizing rhetoric on how to make those cuts a reality.
Last year, a bipartisan group of 23 members of Congress, hosted by the Aspen Institute, travelled to Ethiopia to get a firsthand view of the progress the country was making in modernizing agriculture and smallholder farming.
For smallholder farms—usually those supporting a single family—expenses come early in the season before the planting while income arrives only several months later with the harvest.
We sat down with Ambassador Kenneth Quinn, President of the World Food Prize Foundation, to find out more about its efforts to educate the public about agricultural development and food security.