VZCZCXRO2047
RR RUEHMRE RUEHSR
DE RUEHFR #0751 1091641
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 181641Z APR 08
FM AMEMBASSY PARIS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2684
RUEHRC/USDA FAS WASHDC
INFO RUEHXQ/ALL EUROPEAN UNION POST
RUEHMRE/AMCONSUL MARSEILLE 1993
RUEHSR/AMCONSUL STRASBOURG 0567
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 2863
RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS 6668

UNCLAS PARIS 000751 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
BRUSSELS PASS USEU FOR AGMINCOUNSELOR 
STATE FOR EBB; OES; EUR/ERA; 
STATE PASS USTR FOR MURPHY; 
STATE/EEB/TPP/ABT/ATP JANET SPECK 
USDA/OS/SCHAFER/CONNER; 
USDA/FAS FOR OA/YOST/JACKSON/ROSADO; 
OCRA/CURTIS/ALEXANDER; 
ONA/RIEMENSCHNEIDER/YOUNG; 
OFSO/LEE/YOUNG; 
EU POSTS PASS TO AGRICULTURE AND ECON 
GENEVA FOR USTR, ALSO AGRICULTURE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAGR EAID ETRD PGOV WTRO EUN FR INR
SUBJECT:  RESPONSE : IMPACT OF RISING FOOD / COMMODITY PRICES  - 
FRANCE: FOOD AID AND PROTECTIONNISM 
 
REF: 2008 STATE 039410 
 
¶1. SUMMARY:  The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and 
Ministry of Agriculture (MinAg) recently announced the creation of a 
working group on the global food security issue. This working group 
will present to the Government of France (GOF) proposals for both 
immediate actions and medium and long-term policies to address the 
global food security issue. President Sarkozy also announced April 
18 that France will more than double its funding to the World Food 
Program and in his announcement linked the food security issue to 
climate change. Ag Minister Barnier also expressed France's 
intention to extend the French initiative to the EU level. He also 
stressed that the current food security crisis highlights the need 
to resist pressure for agricultural trade liberalization in the 
newly announced WTO talks and to reform CAP.  END SUMMARY 
 
¶2.  The French working group on Food Security will gather officials 
from both Min Ag and MFA as well as participants from the Ministries 
of Finance, Industry and Cooperation. Scientists from various 
agricultural research organizations will also participate. 
 
¶3.  The working group will propose initial actions to support 
endangered populations in the most vulnerable countries.  It could 
include emergency deliveries of food or financial support for 
locally purchase food.  In the medium term, the working group will 
propose policies to increase global food supply in the coming months 
as well as to strengthen early warning systems and management future 
food crises.  Finally, the working group will make recommendations 
to the GOF on supporting long-term farm policies in developing 
countries to increase their self-sufficiency and food security. 
President Sarkozy announced that France will also more than double 
its funding of the World Food Program to euros 60 million (USD 100 
million)in 2008. 2007 France funding of the WFP amounted to USD 33 
millions. 
 
¶4.  President Sarkozy speaking at the MEM (Major Economies Meeting) 
meeting on climate change April 18 highlighted the link between food 
security and climate changes.  In France's views, more frequent 
droughts, reduced seafood and farm supply due to climate-related 
disasters increase the risk of a global food crisis.  He urged 
developed economies to be proactive on curbing greenhouse gas 
production. 
 
¶5.  Ag Minister Barnier echoed France's initiative at the EU 
Agricultural Council of April 15. He announced that France will 
initiate an EU conference on global food security likely to be held 
in Brussels in July 2008 at the beginning of the French EU 
presidency. But, he also, for the first time, made a link between 
the ongoing WTO talks in Geneva and the current food security 
crisis.  Earlier in the week, Min Ag issued a press release stating 
that Agriculture should not be the "adjusting variable" of the WTO 
negotiations.  In a written response to a French parliamentarian, Ag 
Minister Barnier also stated that France prefers no WTO agreement to 
a bad agreement, because "in a bad agreement, the farm sector of the 
developing countries will be the most hurt."  Barnier wrote, in an 
op-ed on April 17 that the current food security crisis illustrates 
the need to limit if not to drop any proposed liberalization of the 
Common Agricultural Policy. 
 
¶6.  Comment: The Global food security issue has made the headlines 
in France.  European, U.S. and other countries' biofuel programs 
have been partly blamed for the hike in global commodity and food 
prices.  What is new is that this issue is now being used by the GOF 
to advance its policy objectives relative to the WTO Doha 
negotiations and CAP reform. Embassy Paris is preparing an op-ed 
piece to counter the Ag Minister's contention that free trade is 
detrimental to the world food supply situation. End comment. 
 
STAPLETON