Food Futures Webinar I:

Trade and Food Security in the Time of COVID-19

Our first webinar explored the interrelated issues of trade and global food security in the time of Covid-19. We covered a number of issues with our speakers. Following the release of the new SOFI report (The State of Food and Nutrition Security in the World 2020), we were interested in discussing the impacts of Covid-19 on global food (in)security. We also looked to the impacts arising from measures taken by states and the international community in response to the virus. We delved into what role (positive or negative) the architecture of global supply chains, and our current regional/international trade agreement systems play in the related Covid-19 health and food crises. Finally, we addressed any inadequacies in the global trade regime, which Covid-19 has laid bare or exacerbated.

Our moderators were joined by three speakers:

Marie-Noëlle Desrochers – Director, Trade Negotiations Division, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Michael Fakhri – UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food

Sophia Murphy – Senior Specialist, Agriculture and Investment, International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD)