Ethics and the politics of food (original) (raw)

2007, International Journal of Food Microbiology

In spite of sophisticated technological and scientific developments in food production and nutrition, efficient means of food distribution, and unprecedented availability of food in some parts of the world, food is contested like never before. Some consumers are concerned about food safety and ethics related to the food they buy, others are concerned because their means of livelihood hardly allows them to take on the role of consumers at all. Others still, lack the opportunity to be active co-participants in the governance and shaping of the local and global food system, and thus, feel disenfranchised. It is a paradox that amidst technological achievements, economic welfare, and global politics, the right to safe and healthy food for all remains so difficult to secure. Yet, this is precisely the case in the world today. ''The ethics and the politics of food'' was the title of the 6th conference of the European Society for Agricultural and Food Ethics (EurSafe), held in Oslo in June 2006. This special issue presents a selection of papers that were presented there. The original versions of these papers were printed in the Congress preprints. The current versions have been reviewed, revised, and expanded. One important lesson from the conference is that issues related to the ethics and the politics of food do not belong to a single discipline, but cut across the boundaries between philosophy, social sciences, and the natural sciences. What starts out as a concern about food risk and safety soon moves to important discussions in ethics, politics, and cultural values. Another important lesson is that food itself transcends boundaries between realms of modern society such as between production and consumption, science, technology, and politics, and nature and culture. This special issue reflects the transcendent, trans-disciplinary, and global character of this emerging field. Selecting the following set of articles, we have sought to capture some of the variety of empirical topics and analytic approaches that characterizes the contributions to the conference. Empirically, one can study the ethics and politics of food from the points of view of consumption, primary production, industrial production, policy making and regulation, or global organizations. Pressing issues of concern include proper land use, animal welfare, genetic modification