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The devastating impact on people |
Great swathes of South America, previously used for staple food crops, have been given over to soy production. For example, with soy expansion, the land area devoted to cultivating food crops in Argentina has reduced dramatically. The area used for the cultivation of rice has reduced by 44%, maize by 26%, wheat by 3% and sunflower 34%. This is linked to a significant increase in the price of staple foods: 130% for rice and 272% for lentils. Smallholder farmers and indigenous communities are displaced from their land. This destroys diversified small farming systems which are responsible for a large proportion of the food staples consumed. Therefore expansion of soy has brought about land concentration and a progressive reduction of the number of family farms, thus reducing food security. Community groups in Paraguay estimate that 90,000 families are forced from their ancestral lands every year to make way for soy plantations. Globally, growing feeds for animals uses a third of global arable land. Demand for livestock products puts pressure on land to grow feeds, mostly soy, and has been identified as a cause of the recent food crisis. With its high per capita use of land and dependence on imports of feeds, the EU is responsible for driving up global food prices.
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