Patterns of world wheat trade, 1945–2010: The long hangover from the second food regime

Food regime analysis is concerned with interpreting possibilities and conflicts inherent to the 21st‐century food system in historical terms. This paper summarizes the theoretical discussion of the food regime method, and of the identification of different “food regime periods” throughout modern history. While it is widely accepted that the so‐called “second food regime” has already ended, there is much discussion on whether or not it is possible to talk about a more recent third food regime. This paper traces the evolution of the “wheat complex” over the “second food regime” (1947–1973) and over the next 45 years, and offers an explanation for the evolution of world wheat trade distribution, based on food regime analysis. Certain authors have claimed that the collapse of the WTO Doha round of negotiations may be understood as a “hangover” from the second food regime. Similarly, this paper argues that the increasing wheat dependence of poor and insecure countries over the past 40 years may be considered as a path dependence outcome of a process initiated during the second food regime.     

“The enchantment of property”: Arthur Young,enclosure, and the cottage economy in England, 1770–1840

English agricultural practice changed dramatically in the late 18th and early 19th centuries as enclosure, the dominance of commercial short‐term leases for tenant farmers, and the proletarianization of the agricultural labour force completed what has been called an agricultural revolution. A less often noted aspect of this change was what was called “a war on cottages” and cottage gardens. The Board of Agriculture and Arthur Young were important cheerleaders for this process. Yet many of the most prominent members of the Board of Agriculture made impassioned appeals for the provision of land for English cottagers as a way to reduce poverty and stressed that cottagers produced remarkable returns from their small farms. Arthur Young became the most vocal proponent of land for cottagers. This article suggests that their appeals for land for cottagers were limited by both farmers' desire for easily controlled labour and misplaced concerns about the supposed inevitability of the poverty inherent in very small farms.     

MARKETING BOARDS AND PRICE FUNDS IN UGANDA, 1950–1960: A COMMENT

In a recent of this Journal, three authors have undertaken a critical survey of the operations of the Uganda Marketing Boards and associated Price Funds in the decade after 1950.*     

Sustainable Agriculture – Life beyond Subsidies: Lessons from New Zealand

This address explores the importance for agricultural sustainability of different types of capital assets, especially knowledge capital, drawing on recent research in New Zealand that has aimed to expand the contribution of the primary sector to sustainable wellbeing. I begin with an overview of the theory on what constitutes sustainability and wellbeing, focusing on connections between wellbeing, capabilities and different types of capital stocks, and highlighting the importance of knowledge capital for wellbeing. Recent trends in New Zealand and United Kingdom agriculture provide the applied context for analysis of some key knowledge issues facing agriculture, framed by the capability theory of the firm following David Teece. The paper finishes with a brief conclusion on the implications for the UK.     

Re‐evaluating the Harbinson Proposal – Prospects for the EU25: A Note

In this study, we use the Harbinson Proposal and July Framework to compare a ‘likely’ Doha scenario with a realistic baseline. The novelty of this study is that we focus exclusively on the trade‐led welfare impacts in selected EU member states. The important features of this note are the: (i) usage of the latest Global Trade Analysis Project (version 6) data; (ii) focus on EU25 regions incorporating all major Common Agricultural Policy instruments and reforms; and (iii) inclusion of binding tariff overhangs into the Harbinson tariff reductions. Results show the damping effects of tariff‐binding overhangs on welfare outcomes. This and other factors which limit the gains to liberalisation mean that the EU25 only realises 10% of its long‐run welfare gain potential, as defined by complete liberalisation.     

Counting the cost: the reserve price scheme for wool 1970‐2001

This paper provides a policy commentary on the collapse in 1991 of the Australian Reserve Price Scheme for wool. A key cause of the collapse in the Scheme was a change in the RPS's governance arrangements, which led to increased political pressures to raise prices to unsustainable levels. In addition, in this paper an estimation has been made of the direct, upfront costs of the operation of the scheme, drawing on the financial accounts of the various agencies operating the RPS and subsequent wool stockpile. This was undertaken to determine the scale of the policy failure.