You are going to read an article about global food companies. First, scan the article below and find these terms. Look them up, provide a definition and use each term in your own sentence. Use the internet for help. prosperity value chain subsidy private sector investment food hub SMEs business accelerator venture fund corporate governance Reading 22 a economic well-being Optimism after the election signals stronger job markets and growing prosperity. Five ways to reboot the global food economy to make it healthier for all Covid-19 has shown how damaging ill-health can be for the economy. However, measures that benefit health, which involve lockdowns and social distancing, can be seen as bad for economic prosperity. A similar contradiction is at the heart of promoting better diets. Poor diet is the world’s leading cause of ill-health. Malnutrition – from undernutrition to obesity – affects at least one-third of the global population. It’s an issue of inequality, too: diet-related challenges disproportionately affect poorer people. Poor nutrition also costs businesses dearly. A report by research institute Chatham House estimates that businesses around the world lose as much as $38 billion a year from undernutrition and obesity among their workforce. Nevertheless, when governments attempt to take unhealthy foods out of the spotlight and place more nutritious foods centre stage, critics are quick to claim that any regulation will hurt business. Yet, any discussion about how to renew the global economy must include food and nutrition. This five-point plan could do the work of resetting the food economy. 1. Financing for healthy food At present, healthier food costs more. Investment is needed all the way along the food value chain to make a healthy diet more affordable. Public spending programmes on agriculture, which comprise subsidies for fertilisers, direct payments to farmers and plant breeding programmes as well as policies to attract private sector investment tend to favour crops like maize, palm oil, rice and soybeans. These crops dominate the unhealthy food industry and leave children in low-income countries undernourished. This investment could instead be used for diversifying and for building supply chains that contain more nutritious foods like fruits, vegetables, beans and whole grains. Investment is needed in local food supply chains too, connecting smaller and more sustainable producers of nutritious foods to consumers who need them most. E-commerce initiatives are growing in many lower income countries and could be built on. Food hubs that bring food from producers to commercial customers or directly to consumers are also becoming more popular. Investment should include small- and mediumsized businesses (SMEs) that play an important role in creating jobs and boosting regional economies. In London, the Good Food Fund is a new £1.8 million business accelerator and venture fund designed to back SMEs and start-ups to produce healthier snacks for kids. 26 Language skills Extras Explore 2 Global issues Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv
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