Barely had the dust settled in the wake of Haiti’s worst earthquake in two centuries when international aid agencies began the rush to help. A priority was to feed the devastated Caribbean country’s population. Yet added to immediate catastrophes such as Haiti’s is the long-term need to secure global food supplies in the face of rising population, climate change and climbing food prices. While governments, donors and the aid community have traditionally dominated food security discussions, the corporate sector has an increasing voice in the debate. Of course, when it comes to the food industry, the term “sustainability” refers to more than a secure supply. It encompasses everything from the environmental impact of agriculture and farm-worker labour standards to the private sector’s role in producing nutrient-rich products and in fighting rising levels of obesity. During the recent food crises it was governments that faced protesters’ anger at soaring prices, but food companies are unlikely to remain immune to the public’s ire if, as seems likely, the cost of food continues to rise. Meanwhile, food producers and agribusinesses are at the receiving end of criticism of their impact on natural resources, whether that is the pollution caused by the run-off of fertiliser chemicals into the water supply or emissions of carbon dioxide and methane – a powerful greenhouse gas produced by livestock. As the world’s biggest consumers of water, agriculture companies are under enormous pressure to find ways of reducing waste and conserving supplies. In India, for example, 80 per cent of the country’s water demand comes from the agricultural sector as it expands to meet the demands of its citizens, many of whom are now able to afford a more sophisticated diet. Companies are also at the centre of the controversy over the use of genetic modification, particularly in Europe, where debates still rage over the safety and suitability of GM seeds and environmentalists say genetic modification threatens biodiversity. At the same time, climate and development specialists believe bio-crops have the potential to push up food yields and, in the case of drought-resistant crops, do so while putting less pressure on water supplies. Climate change is something global food companies need to take seriously. Severe weather, rising sea levels and drought associated with shifting weather patterns are threatening to affect food production in some parts of the world. Wheat farmers in Australia know this all too well, having lived through a long stretch of poor harvests caused by drought. Policymakers are looking more closely at how the private sector – from agribusinesses to supermarkets – can help ensure food security. In July last year, when world leaders pledged to devote $20bn over three years to a “food security initiative”, part of the commitment reflected a move away from reliance on aid models to a broader approach that includes fostering the growth of the agricultural sector in developing countries. This also means encouraging companies to step up their research and development. Many blame the lowering of agricultural yield growth in the past decade on the lack of investment in R&D, particularly in poorer parts of the world where growth in inflation-adjusted spending on agricultural research has slowed more markedly since the 1970s than it has in rich countries. However, innovation does not necessarily need to emerge from within the walls of large well-funded corporations. In India and Africa, for example, the low-cost drip irrigation systems developed by social entrepreneurs and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) have improved yields and reduced water and energy use for smallholder farmers, raising their incomes in the process. The private sector can also have a positive impact on poor farmers – simultaneously enhancing food security by bringing them into procurement systems, a strategy that has the added advantage of giving corporate buyers a more diverse and therefore secure supply chain. In parts of Africa, one project – a public-private initiative bringing together Unilever, the Anglo-Dutch consumer products group, and a range of NGOs – is helping local farmers develop seeds from the allenblackia tree into a new crop that will provide oil supplies for Unilever products such as soap and margarine. The company is also working with Oxfam, the UK-based charity, to connect smallholder farmers in rural Azerbaijan and Tanzania to Unilever’s global supply chain. In Africa, Diageo, the drinks company, has shifted procurement for its breweries from imported barley to grain grown by local farmers through a project to help smallholders cultivate a variety of sorghum that can be used in beer. As a result, Nigerian farmers have reported a 35 to 50 per cent increase in their yields and Diageo’s breweries in Nigeria now source 95 per cent of the grain they need locally, supporting about 27,000 jobs. For food companies entering emerging markets, business opportunities lie not only in bringing smallholder farmers into their supply chains but also in feeding the appetites of consumers with rising incomes. In cities such as Beijing and Shanghai, affluent shoppers enjoy everything from Belgian chocolates and French cheeses to Italian olive oil and Japanese noodles. But with business opportunities come responsibilities, and many companies are recognising the potential to use their products’ increased access to vitamins and minerals and address a widespread condition known as “hidden hunger”, thought to affect 2bn people worldwide and in infants causes loss of IQ and stunting. Companies such as Tetra Pak, the world’s biggest packaging company, Groupe Danone, the French food company, Unilever, and DSM, the Dutch life and material sciences group, are experimenting with different models of food fortification – many of them working with the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition, a non-profit organisation that promotes public-private partnerships to fight malnutrition. Meanwhile in developed markets, business opportunities exist in feeding consumer appetites for Fairtrade and ethically sourced foods that also meet high environmental standards. In the UK, this trend even seems to be defying the downturn, according to the Co-operative Group, which this month reported that sales of Fairtrade wines grew by 36 per cent, with sales of Fairtrade confectionery rising by 26 per cent. In recent years, British retailer Marks and Spencer has demonstrated the power of the ethical shopper with its Look Behind the Label campaign, which uses transparency on environmental and labour standards to appeal to the country’s increasingly ethically minded shoppers. When it comes to tackling obesity, consumer power has combined with pressure on the part of health authorities to push food companies into action. Regulatory measures have helped. In New York, for example, fast food chains must now post calorie counts alongside prices on their menus. However, companies have also been driven as much by the carrot as by the stick, as they look to serve health-conscious consumers while also demonstrating their corporate responsibility credentials by, for example, taking measures to lower the consumption by children and teenagers of sugary sodas and junk food. The risks and opportunities for today’s food industry are manifold. Producing sustainable supplies of food is not only critical to the world’s rising population, but also provides opportunities in developing countries as well as in mature markets, where a growing band of ethical and health-driven shoppers are shaping food companies’ product development strategies. At the same time, companies need to address risks, particularly those associated with their impact on natural resources. This is being driven not only by the desire to quell the anger of environmental activists but also – with evidence that climate change will affect their ability to cultivate food commodities – to guarantee the sustainability, in every sense of the word, of their profitability.

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