APFS-420: Food Policy

The landscape of food policy is shaped in a highly contested environment in which actors from government, industry, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and international organizations all exert influence. This course will examine the role these actors play in the disputed environment that shapes food policy in both rich and poor countries. We will review the influence of agribusiness, social movements (food activists), NGOs, state actors, and intergovernmental actors. The course uses an interdisciplinary approach utilizing resources from several academic disciplines including political science, economics, sociology, law, and anthropology; but emphasis will be on the political economy of food-understanding the power of dynamics that underlie both food and farming policy in domestic and international context.