Global Food Trade and Geopolitics

• To explain why the growth in global agricultural trade has been limited.

• To describe the pattern of import and export trades.

Learning objectives

Starter

What words are missing in this definition of geopolitics?

Geopolitics is the way in which geography, demography, economics and the distribution of

__________ interrelate with the politics of nations and the ___________ between nations.

Can you think of an example relating to food supply?

resources

relationships

Geopolitics may include wars, sanctions, trading blocs, and trade regulations and laws.

• Worldwide trade in agricultural products has increased in the last 50 years.

• However, it has not grown rapidly - only at the rate of global economic output.

Global trade

There are four key reasons for this…

Barriers to trade

1. Explain how the GATT contributed to the constraints of the global food trade.

2. Why is import substitution disadvantageous to global trade?

3. How did demand affect export trade?

Read the information sheet and answer the following questions:

• Agriculture has grown modestly compared to manufacturing.

• There has been a relative decline in the importance of agricultural exports.

Growth of manufactured goods

The share of agricultural exports in total traded merchandise has declined dramatically, from 50% in the early 1960s to 6% by 2000.

• To explain why the growth in global agricultural trade has been limited.

• To describe the pattern of import and export trades.

Learning objectives

Least developed countries’ trade balance for agricultural products.

Trade balances

Trade surplus: exports exceed imports

Trade deficit: imports exceed exports

• Study Figure 6.7 in the text book (page 206).

Global pattern of food trade

What patterns can you see? Which regions are the main importers and exporters?

• Agricultural trade remains an important source of export earnings for some developed countries, e.g. France, Australia, New Zealand and the USA.

• Some developing countries still rely heavily on agricultural exports for their foreign earnings. Particularly countries in the tropics, South America and Africa. Sugar, coffee and bananas are important crops.

Prep

1. Read and makes notes on the geopolitics section in the textbook (page 210) and ‘the geopolitics of food’ on www.coolgeography.co.uk.

2. Answer the exam question.“What is meant by the geopolitics of food?” (4 marks)

We have indirectly looked at elements of geopolitics this lesson.

• To explain why the growth in global agricultural trade has been limited.

• To describe the pattern of import and export trades.

Learning objectives