Raj was the most charismatic figure on the panel, and the whole thing got my brain cells popping and sparking. Excellent stimulating discussion. Need to get Raj Patel on The Colbert Report. I saw him on "The Hour" with George Unpronouncable and realized he's informative in any setting: book, blog, speech, panel, long or short interview, funny or serious. A great man behind a leviathan subject. Civilization needs him.

Hi Raj,

It is fantastic to see you and Sarath Fernando as participants in this debate. Both of you are very powerful! Hope you never stop.
I will definitely show the discussion in classes I teach; poverty , urban economics, feminist economics.

By the way, video can be downloaded from
http://www.ifad.org/media/video/food/

All the best!
hande

Hi Raj.

Watched the BBC debate and wanted to add that one of the easiest way for consumers in the developed world to help small farmers in developing countries is to buy more fresh fruits and vegetables.

The large majority of fresh fruits and vegetables that are grown for export tend to be produced by small farmers and are marketed through comparatively small-scale grower-owned companies and organisations. Many of these earn their living in developing countries.

Ironically, the trend among progressives in leading developed economies is now actively to campaign against imported fresh fruit and vegetables: in doing so, they cut off a vital source of income for small growers and also undermine the basic tenet of every progressive, that is to help people to help themselves out of poverty.

Best regards,

Chris

The food debate is definitely a good place to start to identify openly some of the imbalances concerning abject poverty and exploitation of the poor, with the greed, lack of compassion and lack of justice internationally,
which is driven by the international corporates.
I see many issues within issues:- one being the right of small farmers to farm in their traditional manner, and having the personal/communal power to choose their own economic destinations.
Another important issue is the nutritional value of the food being pedalled by the Corporates.
Under the so-called developed method of food production practised by most of the larger food producers, the food being grown and sold through corporate distributers for the most part does not come anywhere near to meeting the nutritional requirements of the human body if good health is to be the accepted outcome.
Small farmers, and their traditional methods of farming, (either without or with minimal use of artificial fertilisers and toxic chemicals)have traditionally produced better nutritional results.
Banning politics and corporates from any role in food, ie food production/food distribution/food sales would clear the way to address the need to get JUSTICE, HEALTH and COMPASSION to be the only criteria for food production internationally.
Let's see what a difference could be made to to key concerns above, if power and greed was removed!!
Fat chance, but we have to start with spreading the awareness.

Hi Raj,
Enjoyed the debate. Very though provoking. Do you know if its available online? I wanted to show it to my friends next week.
Thanks!
Gyan

Thank you, I think you did a very good job.
Keep it up, we need people like you.

G.Drablos