A food regime’s perspective on palestine: Neoliberalism and the question of land and food sovereignty within the context of occupation

Abstract

The question of land and its strategic, socio-political and agricultural relevance within the Israeli-Palestinian conflict must be understood against the background of the dominant position of Israel as occupational power, heavily affecting the access to, and the control over natural resources. The subjects discussed within this article are intrinsically linked via the usage of the food regime approach as analytical tool, and the article’s specific focus on land. An attempt is made to grasp the neoliberal restructuring of Palestine and its developments in the agricultural sector, paying particular attention to land grabbing. Neoliberalism aided the institutionalising and normalising of accumulation by dispossession in the occupied Palestinian territories (oPt), these being identified as a key feature of the corporate food regime, and leading to the marginalisation of rural communities and to depeasantisation. The crises of the food regime spurred food sovereignty movements all around the globe. While analysing the political demands and approaches of the concept of food sovereignty centered around natural resources, this article also explores why the concept offers various ideas for an alternative development in Palestine. This paper tries to show how specific dynamics observed by the food regime analytics can be helpful in contextualising developments within the oPt – ranging from neoliberal restructuring to the emergence of food sovereignty.