Política de preços mínimos e segurança alimentar no Brasil: análise das ações governamentais sobre produtos da cesta básica nacional

Abstract

The theme of hunger gained prominence in the 20th century, leading to the establishment of the food and agriculture organization of the united nations due to the need to ensure access to food. In brazil, the adherence to initiatives such as food and nutritional security solidified after global discussions and the implementation of the zero hunger program, focusing on family farming, agrarian reform, and supply policies, including the minimum price guarantee policy. The minimum price guarantee policy, established in 2003 after the opening of the foreign market, seeks to balance prices and public stocks to ensure sovereignty and price regularization, playing a crucial role in food security. However, the disparity between the prices paid to producers and those practiced in the market affects its effectiveness. The COVID-19 pandemic accentuated price increases, impacting the basic basket, highlighting the importance of income guaranteed to producers by the minimum price guarantee policy for economic stability. When minimum prices are not balanced, they affect production costs, discouraging farmers and compromising supply, impacting food security. The Minimum Price Guarantee Policy, despite being one of the policies for public supply, is insufficient in the country's stocks, essential to promoting food security. Encouraging sustainable agricultural practices and ensuring fair access to food are goals aimed at mitigating food insecurity and its social impacts, with a planned approach to creating resilient systems in the face of challenges such as economic crises and climate change. The study addressed fluctuations in the market prices of essential products in the Brazilian basic basket from 2019 to 2022, assessing the effectiveness of the Minimum Price Guarantee Policy in mitigating impacts on producers' income and family consumption. Using descriptive and exploratory analyses, it revealed discrepancies between the prices received by producers and those practiced in the markets, highlighting government neglect and the decline in CONAB's activities over time. The lack of investment in the strategic food reserve exposes the State's fragility, indicating the need for more comprehensive policies to ensure economic stability and adequate access to basic foods, especially in times of crisis such as the pandemic. It is concluded that strategies such as the minimum price policy have been abandoned, resulting in the rise of market prices, evidencing the state's omission in fulfilling the human right to adequate food. the study suggests the urgency of reflections and debates to develop more effective food management strategies.