Banks| Dodgy Deals| Map| Campaigns
About us| Blog| Publications| Successes| Contact us| Donate
About BankTrack
Visit us
Organisation
Our team
Our board
Guiding principles
Team up with us
Join our Active Allies list
Our annual reports
Funding and finances
History
BankTrack in the media
Our privacy policy
Donate
2020-12-22 00:00:00
Blog: In 2020, the Equator Principles struggle to remain relevant
2020-12-14 00:00:00
The battle to stop Line 3 is heating up on the ground and across the US
2020-12-14 00:00:00
Corporate accountability and the just transition: Frameworks for holding corporations accountable for climate change
2020-12-12 00:00:00
Five years since the Paris Agreement, are banks' 2050 pledges enough to reign in fossil fuel finance?
2020-09-24 12:53:20
Oscislowo open-pit coal mine cancelled
2020-09-08 13:07:41
Strengthened OECD guidance on responsible banking
2020-02-25 10:35:27
JPMorgan Chase Coal and Arctic Policy a step forward but fails to match its climate responsibility as the world’s #1 Fossil Bank
2020-02-18 17:27:23
Civil society groups welcome Royal Bank of Scotland preparing to exit fossil fuels
Connect
2020-11-30 00:00:00
Soft Commitments, Hard Lessons: an analysis of the Soft Commodities Compact
2020-11-24 00:00:00
"Trust Us, We're Equator Banks": Part II
2020-11-18 00:00:00
Crude Risk: Risks to banks and investors from the East African Crude Oil Pipeline
2020-09-16 00:00:00
Principles for Paris-Aligned Financial Institutions: Climate Impact, Fossil Fuels and Deforestation
2020-08-17 00:00:00
"Trust Us, We're Equator Banks": Part I
2020-03-18 00:00:00
Banking on Climate Change - Fossil Fuel Finance Report 2020
See all publications
Browse
Home
Banks
Dodgy Deals
Map
Campaigns
About
About BankTrack
Donate
Contact BankTrack
Publications
Victories
Follow Us
News
BankTrack blog
Facebook page
Twitter channel
Home › News
New report: European banks fuelling food price volatility and hunger
Start
Banks

By: Friends of the Earth Europe
2012-01-12
Brussels

Contact:

Daniel Pentzlin, sustainable finance campaigner for Friends of the Earth Europe
Tel: +32 (0) 2 893 1024, e-mail: daniel.pentzlin@foeeurope.org

Sam Fleet, communications officer, Friends of the Earth Europe, (EN)
Tel: +32 (0) 2893 1012, e-mail: samuel.fleet@foeeurope.org


Share this page:

European banks, pension funds and insurance companies are increasing global hunger and poverty by speculating on  food prices and financing land grabs in poorer countries, according to a  new report released today (January 12) by Friends of the Earth Europe.

The report analyses the activities of 29 European banks, pension funds and insurance companies, including Deutsche Bank, Barclays, RBS,
Allianz, BNP Paribas, AXA, HSBC, Generali, Allianz, Unicredit and Credit Agricole. It reveals the significant involvement of these financial institutions in food speculation, and the direct or indirect financing of land grabbing. Environmental and development organisations are calling for strict regulation to rein in these destructive activities.

Daniel Pentzlin, sustainable finance campaigner for Friends of the Earth
Europe said: "Food speculation and the financing of land grabbing leads to a catastrophic instability in global food prices - forcing millions of people into poverty and hunger. European banks, insurers and funds that speculate with food and land are gambling with peoples' lives whilst reaping huge profits. This industry needs strict regulation to protect the poorest in society."

The European Commission's proposed new rules for improving transparency in commodity derivatives markets are a first step in the right direction, but serious omissions and loopholes need to be addressed.  ‘Farming Money' recommends a set of key measures to regulate European financial markets and tighten corporate policies on financial services and investments in food commodity derivatives and land deals.

Daniel Pentzlin continued: "2012 offers a big opportunity for Europe to  put a stop to the environmental and social damage done by financial  markets. Politicians need to step in and end excessive and harmful speculation."

Food speculation, with billions of Euros flooding in and out of financial products based on foodstuffs, causes price volatility. These rapid and unpredictable price swings hit the most vulnerable hardest, threatening their right to food, and making it more difficult for farmers to maintain an income - creating instability, hunger and poverty. Land-grabs, following direct and indirect investments in land by large European financial institutions, mean European companies are snatching up land, increasingly in Africa, at the expense of local livelihoods and food sovereignty, in addition to causing knock on environmental devastation through land-use change.

Friends of the Earth Europe is calling on financial institutions to investigate, publish and reduce their involvement in food speculation and investments in land. Banks, pension funds and insurers should phase-out and refrain from speculating in financial products based on staple foods, which threatens the human right to food. European regulators should introduce caps on the size of bets speculators can make to curb excessive speculation.

Read the full report "Farming Money" here.

Related banks

Allianz Germany

active

Banco Santander Spain

active

Barclays United Kingdom

active

BBVA Spain

active

Belfius Belgium

active

BNP Paribas France

active

Commerzbank Germany

active

Crédit Agricole France

active

Danske Bank Denmark

active

DekaBank Germany

active

Deutsche Bank Germany

active

HSBC United Kingdom

active

ING Netherlands

active

Intesa Sanpaolo Italy

active

KBC Belgium

active

NatWest Group United Kingdom

active

Nordea Finland

active

Rabobank Netherlands

active

Société Générale France

active

UniCredit Italy

active
Browse
Home
Banks
Dodgy Deals
Map
Campaigns
About
About BankTrack
Donate
Contact BankTrack
Publications
Victories
Follow Us
News
BankTrack blog
Facebook page
Twitter channel
Vismarkt 15
6511 VJ Nijmegen
The Netherlands

Tel: +31 24 324 9220
Contact@banktrack.org
©2016 BankTrack                Webdesign by BankTrack and EASYmind
BankTrack is a registered charity in the Netherlands (ANBI) - RSIN 813874658
Find our privacy policy here

Stay up to date

Sign up now for all BankTrack's news


Make a comment

Your comment will be reviewed, before being posted