Food policy and economic development in Mediterranean Arab countries

Food practices not only reflect the parameters of agricultural production and food consumption in Mediterranean countries: they are also very useful for analyzing the development of these countries and their economic policies. The food and agricultural sector in most Mediterranean countries shows a very large deficit; the situation in the northern part of the region is more favourable while the southern Mediterranean is heavily in the red especially as regard strategic foodstuffs such as cereals, sugar, meat, dairy and oleaginous products.