Health, food and climate global crises worsened by unsustainable consumption and production-Asia CSOs

“I have heard…that people may become dependent on us for food. I know that was not supposed to be good news. To me, that was good news because before people can do anything they have got to eat. And if you are looking for a way to get people to lean on you and to be dependent on you…it seems to me that food dependences would be terrific.”

Hubert Humphrey quoted in 1957, “The Global Rift: The Third World Comes of Age (p. 443).” Humphrey served as the 38^th US Vice President from 1965 – 1969.

Azra Talat Sayeed of People’s Coalition on Food Sovereignty (PCFS) Pakistan shared this quote in the “Beyond COVID 19: Promoting People-Powered Sustainable Consumption and Production (PP-SCP)” webinar on June 15 to illustrate the dominant paradigm of global consumption and production, which is an unsustainable one.

Civil society organizations (CSOs) PCFS, IBON International, Council for People’s Development and Governance, and Climate Change Network for Community-based Initiatives discussed the current state of consumption and production in Asian countries as it strays farther from achieving genuine and people-centered sustainability.

The discussion was the first of a three-part webinar series tackling the implementation of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goal 12 (SDG 12) on Sustainable Consumption and Production or SCP, particularly the status in Asia.

SDG 12 is among the goals adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2015 which aims to reduce and eliminate waste and pollution and ensure SCP patterns for curbing the adverse effects of climate change and environmental degradation.

However, the CSOs argue that the goal and its indicators are problematic as it does not acknowledge the systematic global obstacles that hinder sustainability and deprive peoples of their rights.

Importance of discussing SCP today

“Why are we all here? I believe it is because we are all deeply concerned that the globe is in the middle of multiple crises: health, economic, and climate crisis. One of the issues at the heart of this crisis is the current unsustainable consumption and production systems dominant in the world,” said Lei Covero of IBON International.

Covero said the discussion on SCP is timely because of three upcoming relevant global events – the UN High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) reviewing SDG12, the UN Food Systems Summit (FSS) in September, and the World Trade Organization convening at the end of 2021.

“In the Asia Pacific region, SDG 12 is the goal with the least progress and is now stagnant,” commented Covero.

Covero said that IBON International believes that the UN FSS fails to address three major issues because it:

1. Disregards the roots of unsustainability of consumption and production and the power of agrochemical giants, elite-led governments and institutions,
2. Stays silent on the political structures that reinforce corporate power esp the political repression of rural movements defending their land
3. Neglects the roles of farmers and peasants in transforming the food system due to corporate capture of the UN FSS

In the WTO meeting, Covero said one important issue is COVID-19 vaccine patterns where the current “global vaccination drive is hindered by a predominant focus on enabling capital to gain more profit.”

“Vaccine access is part of a larger conversation on free and accessible health care, social services, and social and economic rights that needs to be addressed,” said Covero.

No lessons learned so far from the COVID-19 pandemic

“Unsustainable production and consumption are symptoms of systemic, structural barriers that rest on the social, cultural, political, and economic make-up of societies,” said Covero.

Sayeed agreed and pointed out, “What we have seen post-2019 and through COVID-19 is the very roots of unsustainable consumption and production that have been there since humans have decided they want a class-based system since a very small minority of people believed that they can hold everybody hostage to their desires for profit. It is not a new system, it’s a class-based paradigm.”

The G7 Summit in Cornwall, United Kingdom from June 11 to 13 and its focus on the influence of China and on Asia could only mean bad news, especially for poor countries, said Sayeed.

“Under the Biden administration, opening markets and reducing trade barriers will be a priority. In the imperialist neoliberal paradigm, productive resources are forcefully owned and controlled by mega-corporations from G7 capitalist countries,” said Sayeed.

Sayeed observed there has been no change in forms of unsustainable consumption and production event post-pandemic: from land grabbing, profit-driven production e.g. cash crops and agrofuels, hybrid and genetically modified seeds and animals, and international standards for trade in animal and plant materials imposed on poor countries.

“The US and Australia are bringing their cows and livestock to countries where they cannot stand the heat and have to be kept in airconditioned rooms. While people sit out in the heat of Pakistan without electricity, cows needed to be kept in air-conditioned sheds. Can you imagine the craziness of this world?” remarked Sayeed.

Sayeed said the overall impact of unsustainable production is the further exacerbation of structural inequalities. In particular, these are livelihoods lost by millions, migration of workers, and lack of land ownership among others.

Political crises have also contributed to the problem.

Militarization has brutalized their populations in spite of a raging pandemic, as was observed in the Philippines, Myanmar, and India.

The protracted crises in Afghanistan and in Syria have put millions of people in high levels of food insecurity, especially those residing in camps or in war-torn or conflict areas.

The latest conflict in Palestine led to the destruction of arable lands and livestock and barring Gaza fishermen’s access to 85% of their waters.

What this meant for the poor in their everyday lives is unhealthy diets.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN Asia and the Pacific Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition 2020 said there are 1.9 billion people who were unable to afford a healthy diet in 2019. This was driven by high prices for fruits, vegetables, and dairy products making it impossible for the poor to have healthy diets.

The report also cited that 350.6 million people in the Asia and Pacific region are estimated to have been undernourished in 2019, about 51 percent of the global total.

The groups also attributed the rise of zoonotic and other types of diseases to unsustainable economic processes.

What needs to be done?

“The world must never return to ‘business as usual’ for consumption and production systems are made to serve the profit-making schemes of the elite,” remarked Covero.

Transformational alternatives with people-centered principles must instead be adopted, she pushed.

“The current system must be replaced by radically different systems of production and consumption that dismantle inequality and take care of the people and the planet,” said Covero.

Sayeed said resisting unsustainable consumption and production at its roots include pushing for equitable distribution of land.

She also agreed with IBON Executive Editor Rosario Guzman’s proposal for a “reverse neoliberalism” by reinstituting tariffs, regulating markets, abrogating unjust trade deals and land concessions.

Sayeed also stressed that it is important to hold governments accountable.

The second forum to be held on June 29, 2021 will cover community-led and rights-based practices from countries across Asia. The third forum will take up ways forward in advancing advocacy campaigns is set on July 13, 2021, coinciding with the opening of the UN High-Level Political Forum where SDGs, particularly SDG12, will be reviewed.

The recommendations and outcomes in all three parts will be compiled as advocacy messages to be submitted to the UN HLPF and other related international advocacy spaces. 

With a report from Lady Ann Salem