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1. 1he pr|vanzanon of a bas|c human need
AdequaLe and nuLrluous food, fresh alr and drlnkable wa-
Ler are Lhe Lhree essenuals our human body requlres Lo
funcuon. 1hey are llmlLed buL renewable resources. Wlld
food ls consldered a common good, buL culuvaLed food ls
amply regarded as a prlvaLe one. WaLer ls belng rebrand-
ed from a free-access common good Lo a fee-resLrlcLed
prlvaLe good, a rsL sLep Lowards a full prlvauzauon pro-
cess, followlng a very slmllar paLh Lo LhaL of food. Alr ls
sull consldered a global common good and lL has barely
been enclosed alLhough lLs commodlcauon has already
sLarLed uslng creauve accounung based on economlc val-
uauon of envlronmenLal processes.
1he commodlcauon of food ls a human-lnduced process
LhaL deals more wlLh Lhe proprleLary rlghLs of naLural re-
sources Lhan wlLh Lhe lnLrlnslc naLure of Lhe good. 1he
sLandard economlc denluon of publlc goods ls anchored
on non-rlvalry and non-excludablllLy. Landard examples
of publlc goods lnclude fresh alr, waLer, knowledge, na-
uonal defence, unlversal publlc healLh and peace, buL
never food. ubllc goods can be governed by boLh publlc
and prlvaLe properLy schemes (as we can see ln Lhe healLh
and educauon domalns) and Lhe feaLures of goods are
raLher sLauc. ln pollucal Lerms, however, excludablllLy and
rlvalry are soclal consLrucLs LhaL can be modled by soclal
arrangemenLs. Coods oen become prlvaLe or publlc as a
resulL of dellberaLe pollcy cholces or Lechnlcal progresses.
roprleLary rlghLs are a seL of soclal and legal norms,
whose naLure and speclclues are deLermlned by each
socleLy. ubllc and prlvaLe goods are dened by enuLle-
menLs, regulauons and sancuons LhaL allowed cerLaln ac-
uvlues and proscrlbed oLhers for speclc groups or peo-
ple.
lood ls a de facLo lmpure publlc good, beuer Lermed as
common good, governed by publlc lnsuLuuons ln many
aspecLs (food safeLy regulauons, nuLrluon, seed markeLs,
ferullzer subsldles), provlded by collecuve acuons ln Lhou-
sands of cusLomary and posL-lndusLrlal collecuve arrange-
menLs (cooklng reclpes, farmers seed exchanges, con-
sumer-producers assoclauons, cooperauves or communl-
Ly-supporLed agrlculLure), buL largely dlsLrlbuLed by mar-
keL rules. Many socleues have consldered, and sull con-
slder, food as a common good, as well as foresLs, sher-
les, land and waLer.
1he commodlcauon and relaLed prlvauzauon of food ls
raLher compleLed nowadays. As such, Lhe enclosure
mechanlsms, Lhrough leglslauon, excesslve prlclng or pa-
LenLs, play a role ln llmlung Lhe access Lo food Lo mllllons
What if food is considered a common good?
The essential narrative for the food and nutrition transition

!ose Luls vlvero ol , hu research fellow aL Lhe CenLre of hllosophy of Law, unlverslLe caLhollque de Louvaln
ConLacL: !ose-luls.vlveropol[uclouvaln.be

1hls arucle presenLs Lhe rauonale developed by Lhe auLhor ln Lhe worklng paper Food as a oos: refraig the arraie of
the gloal food syste, avallable onllne, whlch provldes full references.

Author stateet: The author delared ot haig ay olit of iterest.
SPEAKERS CORNER
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of people. Puman belngs can eaL food as long as Lhey
have money Lo buy lL or means Lo produce lL. 1hls com-
modluzauon moulded Lhe domlnanL lndusLrlal food sys-
Lem LhaL feeds a greaL share of Lhe world populauon.
2. 1he unsusta|nab|e |ndustr|a| food system
1he lndusLrlal and hlghly mechanlzed food sysLem has
achleved remarkable ouLpuLs durlng Lhe second half of
Lhe 20Lh cenLury by lncreaslng food producuon and faclll-
Laung food access Lo mllllons of urban and rural dwellers.
1rlpllng global crop producuon, lncreaslng ylelds and low-
erlng food prlces have beneued mosL consumers ln Lhe
world. roducuvlLy galns, however, have been uneven
across reglons and llmlLed Lo some cereal crops (rlce,
malze and wheaL). 1he world produces enough calorles Lo
feed a global populauon of 12 bllllon and yeL we wasLe
one Lhlrd of LhaL food slmply because of lLs low prlce ln
Lhe markeL and our fall Lo appreclaLe lLs non-economlc
values. 1hls lndusLrlal food sysLem ls also heavlly subsl-
dlzed and amply favoured by Lax exempuons. lL ls noL
slmply a prlvaLe good ln an unfeuered markeL. 1he non-
convenuonal, alLernauve or agroecologlcal sysLems are
noL equally subsldlzed Lhough.
1he commodlcauon of Lhe lndusLrlal food sysLem also
broughL many undeslrable consequences. !usL Lo name a
few, one can remlnd oneself LhaL 70 of hungry people
are Lhemselves food producers or agrlculLural labourers.
AgrlculLure makes poor use of oLher common goods such
as waLer, long-Lerm sLorage dlmlnlshes Lhe nuLrluous
properues of some foods, producuon of empLy and cheap
calorles renders obeslLy a growlng global pandemlc. lood
producuon ls oen hlghly energy lnemclenL, wlLh long
supply chalns conLrlbuung Lo cllmaLe change. oll degra-
dauon ls Lhe norm ln monoculLure sysLems, wlLh added
loss of blodlverslLy, whlch oLherwlse could conLrlbuLe Lo
Lhe reducuon of producuon rlsk, help Lo preserve culLure,
and encourage dlverse dleLs. We eaL badly and produce
food ln a raLher unsusLalnable manner and wlLh Lhls dom-
lnanL no money, no food" rauonallLy, hunger sull prevalls
ln a world of abundance. Moreover, ln Lhe lasL decade
Lhls commodlcauon seems Lo have gone Loo far as food
can be speculaLed wlLh, dlverLed from human consump-
uon Lo blofuel producuon and used as a [usucauon for
uneLhlcal land grabblng.
AlLhough largely le Lo Lhe markeL, socleLy aL large never-
Lheless agrees LhaL all people should have means Lo se-
cure enough and adequaLe food. lor many years, we
were Lold LhaL loosely regulaLed markeL forces could lead
Lhe nauonal and lnLernauonal food sysLems Lo eradlcaLe
hunger and achleve food and nuLrluon securlLy, as long as
Lhe worlds average wealLh lncreased. The food arket
kos est" was Lhe new manLra. Powever, reallLy has
proven oLherwlse: unregulaLed markeLs do noL dlsLrlbuLe
food adequaLely, as lL ls closely ued Lo purchaslng power.
Moreover, desplLe Lhe common rellance on lndusLry self-
regulauon and publlc-prlvaLe parLnershlps (s) Lo lm-
prove publlc healLh and nuLrluon, Lhere ls no evldence Lo
supporL Lhelr eecuveness ln achlevlng Lhls goal or ln
guaranLeelng food safeLy. 1ransnauonal food corpora-
uons are among Lhe ma[or drlvers of obeslLy due Lo Lhelr
promouon of lncreased consumpuon of ulLraprocessed
food and drlnks. 1he only mechanlsm LhaL seems able Lo
prevenL Lhe harm caused by Lhe growlng domlnauon of
Lhese lndusLrles and Lhelr lnuence on dleLs ls publlc ln-
Lervenuon ln Lhe markeL. o far, s seem slmply Lo ben-
eL prlvaLe acLors as plauorms Lo weaken Lhe LaLe regu-
laLory power and exerL proL-drlven lobby ln publlc pollcy
-maklng.
A food sysLem anchored ln Lhe conslderauon of food as a
commodlLy Lo be dlsLrlbuLed accordlng Lo Lhe demand
and supply markeL rules wlll never achleve food and nuLrl-
uon securlLy for all. 1he prlvaLe secLor ls noL lnLeresLed ln
people who do noL have Lhe money Lo pay for Lhelr ser-
vlces or goods, wheLher vldeogames or sLaple food.
Moreover, markeLs, governed by prlvaLe, lndlvldual self-
lnLeresL, wlll noL provlde an adequaLe quanuLy of publlc
goods wlLh enormous alLhough non-moneuzed beneLs
Lo human belngs, as Lhe beneclal exLernallues cannoL be
capLured by Lhose prlvaLe markeLs.
As comparauve cases, one could analyse oLher publlc
goods such as healLh and educauon. 8oLh have been con-
sldered as publlc responslblllues slnce Lhe lndusLrlal 8evo-
luuon and Lherefore proLecLed by sLaLe regulauons, subsl-
dles and legal enuLlemenLs. And yeL, lL ls wldely accepLed
LhaL prlvaLe schools, unlverslues and hosplLals have also a
role Lo play ln provldlng Lhose enuLlemenLs Lo socleLy.
unllke Lhe corporaLe food secLor, Lhe maln goal of Lhe
prlvaLe educauon and healLh secLors ls noL maxlmlzlng
proL buL dellverlng good quallLy educauon and healLh
and Lhus conLrlbuung Lo Lhe publlc good. Cn Lhe conLrary,
food as a commodlLy ls Lraded where Lhe proL can be
maxlmlzed, however lmporLanL lL may be for human sur-
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vlval and dlsregardlng Lhe nuLrluonal and soclal conse-
quences of produclng food unsusLalnably and dlsLrlbuung
food unfalrly.
1he hlghly-needed narrauve Lo sLeer a Lransluon Lowards
falrer and more susLalnable food sysLems should be more
abouL valulng Lhe muluple dlmenslons of food (oLher Lhan
lLs aruclally-low prlce ln Lhe markeL) Lhan boosung sus-
Lalnable lnLenslcauon of food producuon or scallng up
Lechnology-based paLenLed sllver-bulleLs ln form of ge-
neucally modled organlsms (CMCs), nanoLechnology or
mechanlzed monocropplng agrlculLure.
3. L|m|tanons of the statemarket duopo|y for a fa|rer
food governance
lor cenLurles, Lhe sLaLe and Lhe local rullng powers exerL-
ed a noLable lnuence on food-produclng sysLems, elLher
by conLrolllng means of producuon (land, waLer, seeds,
workforce), Laxlng food producuon or enacung regulaung
frameworks. lood was regularly Lraded ln Lhe markeL as
well as harvesLed or hunLed for free ln naLure. LaLer on,
durlng Lhe 19Lh and 20Lh cenLurles, food evolved from a
common local resource Lo a prlvaLe Lransnauonal com-
modlLy, becomlng an lndusLry and a markeL of mass con-
sumpuon. 1he lndusLrlal food sysLem seeks Lo accumulaLe
underprlced food resources and maxlmlzes Lhe proL of
food enLerprlses lnsLead of maxlmlzlng Lhe nuLrluon and
healLh beneLs of food Lo all.
1he process was noL parallel ln all counLrles (e.g. Lhe com-
munlsL perlod of Lhe former ovleL unlon and lLs allles or
Lhe varled peneLrauon of markeL-led paradlgms ln cus-
Lomary nauve socleues of developlng counLrles), buL lL
became Lhe domlnanL lndusLrlal sysLem LhaL fully conLrols
lnLernauonal food Lrade, feeds a greaL share of Lhe global
populauon and has glven rlse Lo Lhe corporaLe conLrol of
llfe-supporung lndusLrles, from land and waLer grabblng
Lo agrlculLural fuel-based lnpuLs. Meanwhlle, alLhough
Lhe sLaLe has shrunk drasucally, especlally aer Lhe sLruc-
Lural ad[usLmenL programmes and Lhe rlse of Lhe Wash-
lngLon Consensus of Lhe 1980s and 1990s, lL remalns an
lmporLanL force ln global and nauonal food governance
vla food and agrlculLural subsldles, food safeLy regula-
uons, healLh and nuLrluon coverage and agrlculLural re-
search and exLenslon. And even as Lhere has been a rlse
ln lnslsLence of lemng Lhe markeL rule and on Lhe lm-
porLance of free prlces, Lhe sLaLe, respondlng Lo pollucal
and someumes soclal lmperauves, conunues Lo lnserL
prlce wedges Laxes or subsldles lnLo Lhe markeL.
Powever, Lhls sLaLemarkeL duopoly ln food governance
(producuon, dlsLrlbuuon and safeLy) has noL been able Lo
achleve a falr or susLalnable food sysLem ln whlch small
farmers can earn a llvlng ouL of Lhelr land ploLs, every-
body can eaL adequaLely Lhree umes per day, means of
producuon are noL depleLed, sh sLocks are noL over-
shed, arable lands are Laken care of or waLer ls ade-
quaLely used.
8aLher, Lhe absoluLe commodlcauon spurred by corpo-
rauons and sLaLes has deLached food from lLs muluple
dlmenslons [usL Lo reLaln lLs Lradeable feaLures
(durablllLy, exLernal beauLy, sLandardlzauon). 1he nuLrl-
uonal properues of food and foods lmporLance as a good
meanL Lo nourlsh people have also perlshed on Lhe way.
1he conslderauon of food as a pure commodlLy, whlch we
musL remember ls a soclal consLrucL, ls radlcally opposed
Lo lLs conslderauon as a human rlghL LhaL should be guar-
anLeed Lo all (an aspecL LhaL sull resonaLes ln numerous
counLrles) or as a common good LhaL should be avallable
Lo every human belng Lo guaranLee survlval.
4. What needs to change: sh|h|ng m|ndsets and exp|or-
|ng a commons-based food and nutr|non trans|non
WlLh mllllons of people needlessly dylng premaLurely
each year from hunger and obeslLy, nobody can dlspuLe
Lhe need for a change. A re-commonlcauon of food ls an
essenual paradlgm shl ln llghL of Lhe global ghL agalnsL
hunger and malnuLrluon. Powever, almosL none of Lhe
mosL relevanL analyses produced ln Lhe lasL decades on
Lhe faulL llnes of Lhe global food sysLem and Lhe exlsLence
of hunger has ever quesuoned Lhe naLure of food as a
prlvaLe good. 1here ls a common undersLandlng LhaL Lhe
maln problem nowadays ls Lhe lack of food access, and
markeL rules and Lhe purchaslng power are Lhe maln forc-
es Lo maLch food demand and supply.
lnLeresungly, Lhls lnslsLence on undersLandlng food as a
prlvaLe good overlooks several food dlmenslons and
means of food producuon LhaL are sull clearly undersLood
as common goods (see 8ox 1). Moreover, Lhere ls a grow-
lng consensus LhaL healLh should be consldered a publlc
good and hence good nuLrluon should also have a slmllar
conslderauon. Whlle nuLrluous foods and healLhy dleLs
could be rlval and excluslve, Lhelr lnsumclency can creaLe
slgnlcanL consequences for publlc healLh, Lhrough ln-
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creased soclal and economlc cosLs of malnuLrluon and
dleL-relaLed lllnesses. 1herefore, we propose here LhaL
food and nuLrluon securlLy should be undersLood as a
global publlc good, as lL ls nelLher rlval nor excludable ln
Lheory, and all lndlvlduals llvlng ln a food-secure socleLy
beneL from LhaL condluon even lf Lhey do noL conLrlbuLe
or pay anyLhlng for lLs provlslon.
S. 1he tr|centr|c approach to the re-common|hcanon of
food
1he soluuons Lo Lhe falllng lndusLrlal food sysLem wlll noL
arrlve ln a markeL-drlven sllver-bulleL panacea nor ln a
cenLrallzed sLaLe-led scheme, buL wlll requlre experlmen-
Lauon aL muluple levels (personal, local, nauonal, lnLerna-
uonal) and dlverse approaches Lo governance (markeL-
led, sLaLe-led and collecuve acuon-led). We need Lo re-
clalm a new narrauve Lo underLake Lhls re-
commonlcauon of food, lncreaslng Lhe proporuon of
goods and servlces consumed ouLslde Lhe regulaLed for-
mal markeL, elLher acqulred ln Lhe publlc sphere or ln Lhe
self-regulaLed sphere. numerous examples of food shar-
lng, food gleanlng, food swap schemes, falr Lrade, produc-
ersconsumers assoclauons, communlLy-supporLed agrl-
culLure, urban orchards or Lhe myrlad of dlverse alLerna-
uve food neLworks (e.g. food LrusLs ln Lhe unlLed LaLes
and food swaps ln AusLralla) are provlng by dolng LhaL
Lhere ls a growlng movemenL LhaL ls produclng, Lradlng
and valulng food ouLslde Lhe Lradluonal markeLsLaLe
rules and regulauons. 1hose alLernauve food movemenLs
are bulldlng a new polycenLrlc governance of Lhe food
sysLem from Lhe grassrooLs, as Lllnor CsLrom nlcely de-
plcLed for oLher common-pool resources. And Lhese self-
regulaLed lnsuLuuonal arrangemenLs based on collecuve
acuons shall also be glven due conslderauon, approprlaLe
legal enuLlemenLs, adequaLe fundlng and pollucal sup-
porL, [usL as Lhe lndusLrlal food sysLem has en[oyed for
decades.
lood could be produced, dlsLrlbuLed and consumed by
Lhree-pronged lnsuLuuonal arrangemenLs compounded of
(a) clvlc collecuve acuons for food (or AlLernauve lood
neLworks) underLaken lnlually aL local level, (b) govern-
menLs whose maln goal ls Lo maxlmlze Lhe well-belng of
Lhelr cluzens and provlde an enabllng framework for
Lhem Lo en[oy food and nuLrluon securlLy, and (c) a prl-
vaLe secLor LhaL can prosper from Lhe resources lL owns
or renLs under sLaLe regulauons and lncenuves. 1here ls a
need Lo re-accommodaLe Lhls mounung force of cluzens
acuons Lo reclalm food as a common good. lood can and
should be shared wlLhln a polycenLrlc governance sLruc-
Lure, glven for free, guaranLeed by Lhe sLaLe, culuvaLed by
many and also Lraded ln Lhe markeL. 1he Lransluon Lo-
wards a susLalnable food sysLem should revalue Lhe non-
moneLary dlmenslons of food, and hence Lhe global and
local food producuon and dlsLrlbuuon sysLems shall noL
be excluslvely governed by supplydemand markeL rules.
urchaslng power cannoL excluslvely deLermlne our ac-
cess Lo such essenual.
Clvlc collecuve acuons for food are bullL upon Lhe socloec-
ologlcal pracuces of clvlc engagemenL, communlLy and
Lhe celebrauon of local food and Lhey are key unlLs for
Lhe Lransluon Lowards a more nuLrluon-sensluve, susLaln-
able and falrer food and agrlculLure sysLem capable of
feedlng us all by 2030 and beyond. 1helr foundauons lay
on Lhe muluple conslderauon of food as (a) a baslc human
need Lo be avallable Lo all, (b) a fundamenLal human rlghL
Lo be guaranLeed Lo every cluzen of every counLry, (c) a
culLural plllar elLher as producers or consumers, (d) a
markeLable producL sub[ecL Lo falr Lrade and susLalnable
producuon, and (e) a global common good Lo be en[oyed

8ox 1. Iood-re|ated d|mens|ons w|de|y
accepted as common goods
a. 1radluonal agrlculLural knowledge accu-
mulaLed aer Lhousands of years of
pracuces
b. Modern sclence-based agrlculLural
knowledge produced by nauonal lnsuLu-
uons
c. Culslnes, reclpes and nauonal gasLrono-
my
d. Ldlble planLs and anlmals produced by
naLure (sh sLocks and wlld frulLs and
anlmals)
e. Ceneuc resources for food and agrlcul-
Lure
f. lood safeLy conslderauons (e.g. Codex
AllmenLarlus)
g. nuLrluon (lncludlng hunger and obeslLy
lmbalances as publlc bads)
h. lood prlce sLablllLy ln global and nauonal
markeLs
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by humanklnd. 8oLh cusLomary and posL-lndusLrlal collec-
uve acuons for food share Lhls muludlmenslonal conslder-
auon of food LhaL dlverges from Lhe unldlmenslonal ap-
proach of food as a commodlLy by Lhe malnsLream lndus-
Lrlal food sysLem.
6. What th|s means for the food system: |ega| and po||n-
ca| |mp||canons of treanng food as a common good
lf food ls consldered a common good, Lhe legal, economlc
and pollucal lmpllcauons would be huge, enLalllng conse-
quences far beyond Lhe hungry and Lhe counLrles har-
bourlng hungry people. 1o daLe, advocaung for anuhun-
ger and anuobeslLy measures has been very much de-
pendlng on demonsLraung Lhe economlc and pollucal
losses LhaL hunger and obeslLy lmposes Lo human socle-
ues and economles by lncreaslng healLh expendlLure, de-
Lerrlng lnnovauon and producuvlLy or Lrlggerlng soclal
unresL and pollucal Lurmoll. Conversely, alLernauve non-
economlc argumenLs and sLraLegles Lo ghL hunger and
obeslLy have been largely neglecLed, wlLh examples rang-
lng from eLhlcal lmperauves, publlc healLh conslderauons,
soclal coheslon or human rlghLs approaches Lo name [usL
a few. Conslderlng food as a common good would provlde
Lhe adequaLe rauonale Lo supporL Lhese non-economlc
argumenLs.
lood should be kepL ouL from Lrade agreemenLs deallng
wlLh pure prlvaLe goods and Lhere would be a need Lo
esLabllsh a parucular lnLernauonal legal and governance
sysLem for producuon, dlsLrlbuuon and access Lo food aL
global level. 1haL could pave Lhe way for more blndlng
legal frameworks, cosmopollLan global pollcles or fraLer-
nal eLhlcs for Lhe whole human race.
unlversal food coverage schemes or food securlLy oors
could be creaLed, whereby Lhe sLaLe should guaranLee a
mlnlmum amounL of food for all (for example, one loaf of
bread, Len torillas or Lwo ijeras), parallellng Lhe soclal
proLecuon oors LhaL are belng lmplemenLed ln many
hlgh-lncome counLrles. 1haL could also be done by equal-
llng Lhe mlnlmum salary Lo Lhe nauonal food baskeL.
Moreover, Lhere would be a legal and eLhlcal ground Lo
ban nanclal speculauon on food, as Lhls speculauon does
noL beneL elLher Lhe producers or Lhe consumers of such
an essenual resource. And food would be prlorluzed for
human consumpuon, llmlung Lhe non-consumpuon uses
such as blofuels or llvesLock feed.
lnnovauon ln agrlculLural and nuLrluon research and lo-
cally-adapLed Lechnologles would hlghly beneL from Lhls
conslderauon, fosLerlng crowdsourclng lnnovauons and
creauve commons llcenslng sysLems Lo lmprove Lhe nuLrl-
uon-sensluve food sysLem. Mllllons of people lnnovaung
have far more capaclLy Lo nd adapuve and approprlaLe
soluuons Lhan a few Lhousand sclenusLs. 1he copyrlghLed
agrlculLural secLor, wlLh lLs excesslve paLenLs of llfe and
bloplracy, ls deLerrlng Lhe scallng up of food and nuLrluon
securlLy lnnovauons. 1he freedom Lo copy acLually pro-
moLes creauvlLy and lnnovauon raLher Lhan deLer lL, as lL
can be seen ln Lhe fashlon lndusLry, Lhe cooklng and gas-
Lronomy areas or Lhe free soware domaln.
7. 1he food commons trans|non
1he re-commonlcauon of food wlll Lake several decades
so Lhe Lransluon phase should wlLness Lhe coexlsLence of
a dual conslderauon of food: as a common good, whereby
a mlnlmum amounL should be avallable and accesslble Lo
every human belng, and as a prlvaLe good sub[ecL Lo
Lrade. ln any case, self-governlng collecuve acuons cannoL
do Lhe Lransluon by Lhemselves, as food provlslon and
food and nuLrluon securlLy shall lnvolve greaLer levels of
publlc secLor lnvolvemenL and markeL-drlven dlsLrlbu-
uons. Pence, Lhere should be enabllng spaces for local
governmenLs, prlvaLe enLrepreneurs and self-organlzed
communlues Lo coexlsL, wlLh Lhe LaLe Laklng a leadlng
role aL Lhe lnlual sLage of Lhe Lransluon perlod, noL only
as a regulaLory mechanlsm buL also as a fundlng and op-
erauonal lnsLrumenL Lo achleve soclally deslred collecuve
goods (LhaL ls, Lhe food and nuLrluon securlLy of Lhe pop-
ulauon).
llndlng Lhe adequaLe equlllbrlum beLween Lhls LrlcenLrlc
lnsuLuuonal seLup wlll be one of Lhe ma[or challenges hu-
manklnd wlll have Lo address ln Lhe 21sL cenLury, as long
as Lhe populauon grows and LarLhs carrylng capaclLy
seems Lo be surpassed by human greed for resources, as
Chandl once menuoned.
llnally, ln accordance wlLh Lhe common naLure of food, l
would welcome commenLs Lo furLher elaboraLe Lhls ra-
uonale and lLs pracucal lmpllcauons, ldeally produced ln a
commons manner. A falrer and more susLalnable nuLrl-
uon-sensluve food and agrlculLure sysLem ls posslble, buL
we need Lo reconslder Lhe food narrauve Lo gulde LhaL
Lransluon. l do noL expecL Lo see Lhls change compleLed
durlng my llfeume, buL l hope our chlldren may.