CIHEAM Press Review

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A new geopolitics of food is taking shape.

As sweeping new tariffs are introduced by President Trump, major economies and trade blocs are preparing to retaliate — ushering in a new era of trade wars, geopolitical rivalry, and economic instability.

Global food systems are once again on the front line and up for major disruption, as food becomes a pawn in great power rivalries.

Aid cuts, punitive trade terms, and currency volatility are converging in ways that could drive up food prices, erode the resilience of already fragile food systems, and deepen global hunger and inequality.

From the Greco-Persian and Punic Wars of Antiquity to the Mediterranean Campaign (1940-1945), not to mention the Battle of Lepanto (1571), the Mediterranean Sea has, throughout history, been the scene of conflict and tension between coastal civilisations and empires. A commercial and cultural crossroads, it is the regional basin where, since time immemorial, varied cultures, agricultural crops, religions and political regimes have rubbed shoulders, envied one another and competed with each other… From a natural frontier, the sea nevertheless quickly became a maritime roadway and a link between nations. Exchanges of knowledge, goods and know-how were able to cross borders via the sea to spread throughout the region. The search for sea routes gave rise to maritime trade and developed the beginnings of international commerce.

CIHEAM Zaragoza, the Agri-Food Research and Technology Centre of Aragon (CITA), the Faculty of Economics and Business of the University of Zaragoza and the AgriFood Institute of Aragon (IA2), organized the XIV Congress of the Spanish Association of Agrifood Economists (AEEA) in Zaragoza from the 6 to 8 September.

Iran and Afghanistan, Ethiopia and Egypt, in Chile and Peru: Fights over water rights are increasing in the face of heat and drought.

The rapid evolution of the war in Ukraine and its horrendous humanitarian consequences caught many of us by surprise. The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is unfortunately prone to such senseless violence.

Egypt’s foreign minister says Cairo can compensate for the second filling of Ethiopia’s controversial dam on the Blue Nile as a result of the projects the Egyptian government is implementing to confront water scarcity, but other officials beg to differ

Irrigation Minister Hani Sewilam lauded deeply-rooted relations binding Egypt with Tanzania, saying Egypt has always played a pioneering role to boost cooperation among Nile-basin states.

Geopolitics, the study of the effects of geography on politics and international relations, currently plays an important role in the world agrifood system.
For centuries, agriculture and food have been wielded as instruments of power. Feeding the population has always been a key element in asserting sovereignty, and relations with other countries also have an influence on food policies.

Russia’s move, which it followed by bombing the key port city of Odesa and threatening to attack any ship sailing for Ukraine, sent global food prices skyrocketing.

RABAT — Morocco is using its new ties with Israel to combat water and food insecurity. A recent example of the budding partnership was a letter of intent earlier this month to investigate algae in the Sahara region. The investigation will include Morocco’s Mohammed VI Polytechnic University UM6P and Israeli startups which focus on creating sustainable food solutions.

Nations in the MENA region have been intensifying efforts to increase their food security, with Russia's invasion of Ukraine the most recent geopolitical event to underline the fragility of global supply chains, as well as the importance of agricultural self-sufficiency.