The Gillard Government’s Agriculture Minister Tony Burke launched Labor’s agriculture election platform today, which includes the commitment that, if re-elected, the Government will develop a National Food Plan:
The Federal Labor Government will develop a National Food Plan, to better integrate food policy by looking at the food chain from the paddock to the plate. We will look at how we can continue to grow more food, more sustainably and will consider domestic and international food security; food safety and nutrition; issues which affect food affordability; and the sustainability of our food systems, from producers on the land, through to food businesses, manufacturers and retailers.
While this announcement is fairly general, reading between the lines I suspect the Government is motivated by a concern over the risks to food security of the emerging demands for bio-fuels such as ethanol, which are derived from agricultural products (e.g., grains, sugar, or corn). See, for example:
Ethanol use is being encouraged through policies such as the Queensland Government’s proposed mandate that 5% of unleaded fuel sold in Queensland must have ethanol blended in it (It turns out Queensland boaties are concerned about this).
It will be interesting to see how the Gillard Government balances its dual commitments to food security and promoting renewable energy. It is obviously alert to the political sensitivities, and may recall that the pre-financial crisis spike in food prices across the world was blamed on US Government support for ethanol, which resulted in a large portion of the US corn crop being devoted to ethanol production (possibly around 33%). For recent commentary on the US ethanol debate, see The Economist‘s:
Queensland Economy Watch 