An extraordinary summit of the Bolivarian Alternative of the Americas (ALBA), held on April 23, adopted a plan addressing the impact of rising food prices on Latin America's poor.
ALBA is comprised of the governments of Venezuela, Cuba, Bolivia, Nicaragua and Dominica. It was initiated by Venezuela and Cuba in 2004 as a trading bloc based on principles of cooperation and solidarity, counter-posed to pro-corporate, US-pushed neoliberal policies.
The summit, convened by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, was called to address the world food crises and recent threats by the US-backed right-wing oligarchy to Bolivia's indigenous-led government.
On April 24, Venezuelanalysis.com reported that "Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, Bolivian President Evo Morales, Cuban Vice President Carlos Lage, and Chavez signed a series of accords to promote mutual agricultural development, create a joint food distribution network, and create a [US]$100 million ALBA food security fund."
The summit identified rising fuel costs, increased production of biofuels and the fact that the majority of Latin America is reliant on imported food, as the driving forces behind the current world food shortages. Chavez said that "this food crisis is the biggest demonstration of the historic failure of the capitalist model".
Venezuelanalysis.com explained that the agricultural development agreements signed "focus on rice, corn, oil for human consumption, beans, beef, and milk, and the improvement of watering systems. To avoid price speculation by private intermediaries, the heads of state agreed to create a public food distribution network with regulated prices."
Reuters also reported on April 26 that "Farm ministers from Central America, Cuba, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela held talks in the Nicaraguan capital of Managua to boost corn, rice and bean production, as well as lifting output of the animal feed sorghum."
On April 24, Chavez announced that Venezuela had launched a new Socialist Agricultural Development Fund to promote domestic food production to combat the effects of the global food crisis.
An April 26 Venezuelanalysis.com article noted that "general food production in Venezuela has risen by 2.3% annually during [Chavez's] presidential term, compared to 0.9% during the decade prior."
Chavez stated on his Alo Presidente television program that "there is a food crisis in the world, but Venezuela is not going to fall into that crisis. You can be sure of that. Actually we are going to help other nations who are facing the crisis."
Venezuela recently sent 364 tonnes of meat, vegetables and other staple foods in response to recent riots over food shortages in Haiti.