NationStates Jolt Archive

This is a draft of a small, but potentially significant (in my opinion) piece of legislation. I think it needs work before I submit it. This is my first attempted bill, any help would be appreciated


Resolution Concerning the Removal of Produce and Food Products from the Market

In order to prevent the cost of produce from dropping too low, many nations pay farmers/agribusinesses to either destroy a percentage of their crops or intentionally plant considerably less than they could. While we recognize that protecting the market value of produce is important, we feel that it is immoral to needlessly destroy food when so many people in the world go hungry. Seeing this, the People’s Republic of Euphromen would like to propose the following resolution.

UN member nations can no longer pay farmers and agribusinesses to destroy their crops. Countries can continue to pay farmers to remove a percentage of their crops from the open market, but those individuals and businesses taking money to this end must instead give their excess product to a food bank or other organization combating hunger. The choice of what organization the farmers/agribusinesses should send their non-market produce to shall be chosen by the national government, unless they choose to allow regional/local governments or the farmers/companies themselves to make the decision.

Honestly, your best bet to get some good help in drafting would be to bring it here:

http://s15.invisionfree.com/Reclamation/index.php

Reclamation is designed to help people draft and refine their proposals and to give friendly, constructive criticism.

One initial suggestion would be to use this proposal to actually set up the sort of food bank the text mentions. We have no comparable institution within the UN, but a World Food Program or similar could make a useful project.

I'm not sure about banning crop destruction: wouldn't that prohibit governments from compensating farmers who destroy diseased crops? Or simply from paying (as if they would need inducement...) them to do so? If you want to prohibit paying people to destroy crops because it removes them from international food circulation, then you probably need to explicitly add that qualifier.

Also bear in mind that farm subsidies are already prohibited by Resolution #130, Global Food Distribution Act - it's of no direct relevance, but it means that in theory, there is no economic incentive for farmers to take crops out of circulation, because they can't be paid to grow wanton excess.

-- George Madison
Legislative Director
Quintessence of Dust Department of UN Affairs

You're right. It needs a lot of work. You've gotten some good advice from the folks from Karmicaria and Quintessence of Whatever. Take it. You also get a round of applause from our table for bringing it here for folks to look at rather than just submitting it, like so many people do. Good move.

Travilia E. Thwerdock
Ambassador to the United Nations

The best advice I can give has been given, take it to the kind folks at Reclamation. We are really nice there, although I tend to go by a different name on that forum.

P.S. If you want to avoid this -> :headbang: please note the following.

There exists a plethora (actually I think it might be infinite) of possible resolutions that can be brought up before the UN.

There exists a finite number of resolution categories and strengths.

Since all legal reslutions require a proper category and strength, there exists a plethora (again it might be infinite) number of resolutions that simply are illegal no matter what you do because there is no category that applies.

Thus the mods have wisely hinted that you should start with the resolution cateories first and then work on a resolution to the category, not vice versa because otherwise you will be stuck with a resolution that won't fit into a category and all you work will be wasted.