food sovereignity, Via Campesina, global warming and organic food...

'So That Everyone Can Eat, Produce It Here': Food Sovereignty and Land Reform in Haiti

We're putting together a national network, RENHASSA, to show what our alternatives are today. The whole peasant sector is coming together to tell everyone about the policies we want. Our mission is to advocate for Haiti to be sovereign with its food and to promote national production.

We're mobilizing politically for the policies we want. We publish articles and do community radio programs about our positions. We're also doing media campaigns and having meetings to educate people about growing for local and family consumption as much as possible, instead of buying food from other countries. People are starting to recognize and change their habits to just buy local goods.

Now, what must be done: the state must exercise its responsibility toward its people. When we talk about reconstructing Haiti, we can't just talk about houses. It's got to be a whole plan. We have to talk about reconstructing land, about total reforestation.

In a paper published today (June 4) in the journal Global Ecology and Biogeography, researchers present evidence that over the past century, vegetation has been gradually moving toward the poles and up mountain slopes, where temperatures are cooler, as well as toward the equator, where rainfall is greater.

Moreover, an estimated one-tenth to one-half of the land mass on Earth will be highly vulnerable to climate-related vegetation shifts by the end of this century, depending upon how effectively humans are able to curb greenhouse gas emissions, according to the study.

The results came from a meta-analysis of hundreds of field studies and a spatial analysis of observed 20th century climate and projected 21st century vegetation.

The meta-analysis identified field studies that examined long-term vegetation shifts in which climate, rather than impacts from local human activity such as deforestation, was the dominant influence. The researchers found 15 cases of biome shifts since the 18th century that are attributable to changes in temperature and precipitation.

The final result puts organic products slightly behind conventional foods. One percent of conventional and organic foods received a "very good" evaluation. Forty percent of of organic foods was considered "good" in comparison to 44 percent of conventional foods. They were on a par in the "satisfactory" category, with 28 percent each....

Considering that organic products are still sold at a premium when compared to conventional foods, the consumer may not be getting maximum value for her/his hard-earned money when buying organic foods, the study found.

Please take into account that Stiftung Warentest is a German agency and that its tests may therefore not be representative for other parts of the world. However, given the prestige of the institution and the fact that it is their job to inform the German population (82 million people), they should not be dismissed out of hand.