Video viEUws.eu: Sustainable food security expert: "Latin America can be the bread basket of the world"
Ricardo Sánchez López, Director of Sustainable Food Security at the Latin America Conservation Council, talks with journalist Rose O’Donovan (AGRA FACTS) about the role of Latin American agricultural production in contributing to wider food security goals.
Sánchez López underlines the key role that Brazilian food production can play as the “bread basket of the world” - as a key provider of food supplies to feed a growing global population. He hails the ‘Zero Hunger’ initiative - to eradicate hunger and extreme poverty in Brazil - that was introduced by the country’s former President Luiz Lula da Silva in 2003. Sánchez López, the man who has been mandated to coordinate efforts to make food production more sustainable across Latin America, sees a “big space” for small-holders in the food security debate.
The provision of technical assistance, practical information and market access are key, he states. Sánchez López would like to see “spare land” that is still available in Latin America come back into production and the more efficient use of “under performing farmland”. In conclusion, he encourages further debate and international cooperation on poverty alleviation - this would allow countries to better face the hunger challenge.