2. Power in Agriculture
Report looks at where the
economic, political and natural resource
power lies in world agriculture
Asks what does this mean for UK farmers?
Commissioned by Oxford Farming
Conference for 2012
Carried out by SAC’s Rural Policy Centre
3. Summary of conclusions
UK relatively small player in ag markets but
punches above weight in global power
The most powerful countries for agriculture: 1)
United States 2) EU27 3=) China 3=) Russia 4) UK
5) Japan 6) Australasia
Farmers in UK face significant pressures and
position as an agricultural player depends on its
ability to become significantly more productive
5. Economic power
Economically the big power
players are the United States and
the EU-27
Major trading nations plus bases
of transnational corporations in
supply of ag products
6. Economic power cont...
Top 20 countries account for 78% of
global exports and 70% of global
imports
Four companies account for 75% and
90% of global grain trade
Seven companies control virtually all
fertiliser supply
15. Economic power – the future
Power currently concentrated in North
America and Europe
Trade projections indicate unlikely to
change up to 2020
16. China and Brazil have clear advantages
in some commodity markets, but
corporate power is lagging
Export capabilities of the EU-27
predicted to decline in next 10 years
unless policy changes to increase
productivity growth
17. Political power
Political power relevant to agriculture
concentrated in hands of United
States, major EU countries and some others
within G7
But EU will have to confront difficulties and
competition for market access from
emerging economies like China, India and
Brazil
18. Natural resources
UK relatively poorly endowed in global terms in
critical natural resources used in agriculture
Emerging economies better placed in terms of water
and energy endowments ie Brazil, China, Russia
Water-intensive, fertiliser-intensive and energy-
intensive agricultural practices of European countries
are unlikely to be sustainable in long-term
20. Conclusions for UK farmers
The UK punches above its weight in terms of
trade, corporate and political power, but it is
behind Russia and China in terms of overall
power thanks to its low natural resources
While Europe is expected to avoid the worst
effects of climate change, the UK in
particular faces challenges in terms of
land, water and non-renewable energy
21. More conclusions...
Increasingly tight supplies mean European
production has to become more efficient if current
production is to be sustained. If the EU lost its
economic and political powers, the situation for
European agriculture could be even worse in future
Government policy needs to look more carefully at
improving research and development to help
farmers increase production, while export
capabilities could be hit unless trade rules are
altered
22. And finally...
While emerging economies such as China
and Brazil have advantages in certain
commodity markets, their corporate power
in agriculture is still not on a par with the
USA and the EU, especially UK, France and
Germany. However, a major challenge is to
balance corporate power with consumer and
farmer power domestically