Although the IFAP Group on Grains was formally established in 1963, along with the IFAP commodity groups on Dairy Products and on Meats, discussions on grains have dominated debates in IFAP – mainly because grains are central to achieving world food security. In 1948, IFAP supported the establishment of the International Wheat Agreement and in the early 1970s pressed for the IWC to include price stabilization and supply management mechanisms. In the 1950s, IFAP made proposals for an international grains reserve and rules for disposal of grain surpluses. In the 1960s, the Grains Group was the place for animated debates in IFAP between proponents of free trade and proponents of organizing international markets. In 1975, the Group made a statement regarding international grains arrangements and their relationship to world food reserve objectives.

What the world’s producers can do to mitigate the impact of surpluses in the grains and oilseeds markets and their price implications are topics of discussion among IFAP members. Another challenge is for farmers to seek for alternative solutions to national farm policies that are being scrutinized in all countries. In addition, a need for a reflection on the best ways to provide food aid is shared by all farmers and linked closely to the issue of food security, particularly in developing countries. The Group on Grains and Oilseeds takes into account the voices of all IFAP members .

Grains are produced   for direct human consumption (41 percent), animal feed (45 percent) and other uses, including industrial consumption. Cereals constitute the staple food for a majority of  countries  worldwide. According to the FAO, cereals - including rice - represent 55-70 percent of the total calories of food in developing countries and 40 percent in developed countries. Cereal production and consumption has expanded enormously in the past three decades, in parallel to the growth of the world's population.  Unlike grains, only a small fraction of oilseeds is directly consumed as food. The bulk of production is processed into oil and cakes/meals for use as food and feedstuffs. The grains market is dominated by  wheat,  while oilseeds markets are more complex due to their multiple uses.

The main challenge for farmers is how to get a better price in international markets. This price collapse is generally characterized by an oversupply and therefore would imply long-term solutions to address supply-demand management, inherent price volatility, high degrees of market concentration and a development-friendly outcome to the Doha Round of negotiations at the WTO (in particular addressing tariff escalation and export subsidies issues). These responses could be efficient if only in the meantime at national level, diversification is promoted in most of commodities dependent countries.

Commodity issues have always been a central part of the work of IFAP, from its beginnings in 1946. IFAP supported the establishment of the International Wheat Agreement in 1948, and throughout the 1950’s up to the 1970’s a central part of IFAP’s advocacy work was to press for international commodity agreements. IFAP also pressed the GATT to include consultations and negotiations on commodities as early as 1969.

There are many commodity problems that are common to all producers, such as low international prices, commodity support programs, measures to empower farmers in the market, traceability, etc. IFAP therefore created a Commodities Conference with a plenary session that is linked to meetings of the IFAP Executive Committee every year (usually in May). The 1st IFAP Commodities Conference was held in the USA in 1995.

Objectives

The main objectives of the IFAP commodity activities are to:

• Respond to the needs of IFAP’s members based on the recommendations made by the five commodities groups namely: Dairy products Grains and Oilseeds, Meats and feeds, Sugar, and Tropical commodities (cocoa, coffee and cotton), as well as other identified challenges in commodities markets.
• Ensure that farmers are fully involved in the on-going debates on long-term solutions of problems in the commodities markets. For that, IFAP would seek to strengthen its collaboration with specialised commodities organisations as well as international organisations (UNCTAD, Common Fund for Commodities…), research institutes and non-governmental organisations.
• Ensure that relevant information on commodities is available to all members and that it would serve as a platform for discussion and information sharing among members.