In the “Grabage” attracts attention not only to the subject of the paper – it is the interplay of food policy. Equally important, and possibly even more intriguing, it turns out the way in which this weave was presented. The film's thesis might sound like this: 1 of the main areas of the geopolitical conflict for dominance in the 21st century will (is it already?) the food sector.
The documentary "Grabaj" ("The Grab", 2022) directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite in Poland premiered as part of the 22nd Millennium Docs Against Gravity Festival (is inactive available on 1 of the streaming platforms).
The communicative featured in the movie begins in 2014 erstwhile a writer from the California Center for Investigative Reporting – Nathan Halverson, the film's main protagonist – points out the controversial acquisition of Smithfield Foods' shares. Controversial because, first, the Chinese WH Group consortium became the fresh owner, second, Smithfield Foods is an American company, third, the largest global meat producer.
Coming from this transaction, Halverson follows the lead of another equally unprecedented—also from the agroculture area—the lease of Arizonian land by the Saudis; the creation in Russia of Putin farms utilizing downloads from the States, overseeing and supporting the full cowboy process; the buy-out of land in Africa by a consortium operated by a erstwhile human American service.
According to Halverson, the times of the oil conflict are slow going back into the past, and the oil of the future is to be food.
The American director's movie was shot for six years, premiered 3 years ago. In the age of continuous, expanding acceleration, 3 years seem to mean more than, say, 30 years ago. So it is worth looking at the Cowperthwaite presented in the movie in the form of any update and development.
American theme. Customs duties
The past of Arizonian land, taken over and drained (literally, in this case it is mainly about water resources) by the Saudi corporation, leads the manager to face the man supervising this operation. It is not a Saudi but an American, and it is simply a uncommon case of a man feeling – yet – to co-responsibility for the tragedy of many local farmers. In the film's final, we see him turning 180 degrees on his career path: putting modern, revitalizing Arizonian infrastructure on dry soil.
They hope for noble, individual actions, but they do not. Earlier in the film, Arizonian farmers are portrayed, incapable to make a living. Neither national structures nor state structures take any action. But they are not completely left to themselves. They organise themselves in protests and opposition groups, and local activists and journalists offer their aid to publicise the matter. Despite this – and despite the remarks of the creators of the “Randing” – The conclusions seem definitely grim. On the map of geopolitical competitions and movements of large capital, specified people are de facto Invisible.
In the sense of alienation, convinced of betrayal and being robbed by mechanisms of neoliberal, uncontrolled globalisation, they turn to these solutions and those narratives that offer aid or respect, in short, any form of empowerment.
From this perspective, 1 can look at the success of Donald Trump and the increasing global power, the far right – a subject that in the movie Cowperthwaite does not just appear, but could, due to the fact that not only focus on itself, which besides develops themes discussed and exposed by the director.
Even during his first word as president of the United States – as Stephen Starr describes for The Guardian – Trump met with farm tycoons, indicating many problems, including those related to access to water. In 2020 Trump solved this problem, abolishing water supply regulations (with the aim, inter alia, of protecting endangered species of fish and whales). However, this was only an apparent solution: between 2017 and 2022, according to Starr's information, the number of American farms decreased by 141,000.
Another solution that sets Trump in the position of defender of American agribusiness is the legendary customs. However, even during the first word of 45th and 47th president of the United States – as Starr further states – the customs war brought multi-billion losses to American agriculture. True, Trump paid evidence financial support to farmers to offset their losses, but the latest and on a larger scale of the customs war can reap even greater harvests, which will be increasingly hard to cover with additional support.
In fresh years, the Chinese have been betting on independency from imports of American food, and another outlets can retreat due to even higher customs barriers.
So possibly what actually motivates – in genere Farming communities to further support Trump's imagination is simply a symbolic aspect (I mean – above all: rhetorical – forms of designation of the existence of a group of farmers' problems, confirmation of their belief in being victims), not economical and legal solutions themselves. The subject substance of Trump's attacks – or climate policy – is rather convenient to talk about a game of territory (at least for the moment), of which Trump drew full of handfuls during all their presidential campaigns. However, on the basis of the "grabbing", we can conclude that simply resisting climate restrictions will not solve the industry's ongoing crisis.
The problem besides lies elsewhere: in the ruthlessness of external capital, while at the same time turning the eyes of local – in this case: American – officials.
Although Trump's duties may and are expected to make it seem that it is the procedures of "grabbing" that are to resist, they may not be affected at all by facts. It concerns imports, not semi-anonymous exports and the removal of natural resources from the States, as an example of which is presented in the movie Cowperthwaite. specified approval to bring out its own resources may shock even more that – allegedly – we are talking about the world's top power. In turn, erstwhile looking at little crucial players in the world's struggles, "grabbing" from the private (unit) sphere expands to the public (state) sphere – in short – become much more public (and shameless).
African thread. Recolonisation
As part of the investigation presented in the film, a group of journalists are following Erik Prince: a erstwhile CIA agent, in the past utilizing his connections and experience in the military business to then deal with food business. The seemingly unobvious form of refurbishment. However, Prince turns out to be surrounded by many highly placed characters that may justify specified a career path. The highest of them is the brother of the president of the United arabian Emirates (UAE), or Sheikh Tahnoun, liable for the "national defence" of the state. In this case, the defence is gaining rather unobvious importance – the full operation is about ensuring access to food resources.
In Africa, due to the fact that this continent is Prince’s main field of plunder for the UAE, there is to be between 50 and 60% of undeveloped, land-growing land around the globe.
Journalists make contact with a group of Zambians, struggling unsuccessfully for – as is frequently the case in Africa – only unwritten, "unofficial" – the right to land on which and from which they have lived for generations. However, the views of excavators and another machines are increasing. Although the tiny victories of the local community in the “grabbing” take place, it seems that the trend of the recolonization of Africa will be hard to stop.
It doesn't truly request any investigation to know that any form of recolonization has been taking place in Africa for any time now.
A certain – that is, someway uncertain, ambiguous – due to the fact that it superficially takes the form of cooperation.
The primary actor in Africa is not the mediate East Kingdom or private corporations, but China.
The beginnings of China's entry to this continent are inactive seen in the 1950s and the establishment of cooperation – due to socialist connections – with Egypt. At present, however, the mediate State is already investing almost all over the African continent, focusing most heavy on countries specified as Angola, Tanzania or Zambia (i.e. countries highly rich in mineral deposits).
China has rather a reputation in Africa. Ad hoc investment in infrastructure – roads, railways or ports – is to be seen in many African countries with the bare eye, and the Chinese manage to keep seemingly co-operation (not imperialist looting). An appearance, due to the fact that the disparity is rather obvious.
In 2015 alone – as Abel Kinyondo writes in the text “Is China Recolonizing Africa?” – China has allocated 2.9 trillion dollars to the African aid package, while obtaining 55 trillion from African contracts (i.e. over 18 times the amount transferred).
Although according to Kinyondo agroculture – compared to minerals, specified as copper or cobalt – constitutes a marginal scope of Chinese temptations in Africa, it seems that something is already beginning to change. According to George T. Mudimu and Boaventura Monjane in the article “The Chinese Presence in Africa’s Agriculture: A Synopsis”, China, under the agreement of 2022 as part of the Forum for Chinese-African Co-operation (FOCAC), puts expanding conditions on the agricultural field of “cooperation”. As a consequence of this agreement, the Asian power increases the import of African food, creating something called "green trails". Moreover, China was expected to send 500 experts to Africa between 2022 and 2024 to re-launch agrarian areas in Africa.
And since in reality it can be more than trade itself – that Chinese are guided by ideas another than just economical ones, as in Africa they frequently want to last – any examples from fresh past can prove. Having received a debt from China, Angola – a state rich adequate in oil deposits that could easy repay the debt – cannot repay the loan. Why? due to the fact that beginning up to another outlets prohibits the Angolans China (which prefers the debt to grow, the Angolans must inactive indebt in Beijing).
In a akin situation there are, among others, Cameroon, Ethiopia or Kenya, although the ways of debt may vary. For example, in the second country, in the already mentioned text Kinyondo – China offered a debt to build a railway from Nairobi to Mombasa. The problem is that the mediate State had an impact on the task and most likely overstated the construction costs, so the debt is de facto Unpaid. A solution? China offered to take over the port of Mombasa. And the railroad itself remained for 10 years acquired by Chinese consortium Afristar.
When they request it – and in the face of the ongoing climate disaster, it can be assumed that they will request it more and more – the Chinese should not have problems gaining more control over food resources in the African countries.
War thread. Palestine
Having already made crucial discoveries in the field of modern, unofficial food manufacture (business), driven by the successes of Halverson to date, he presents his thesis that the food aspect was to be 1 of the reasons for Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The writer draws attention to the demolition of the dam that the Ukrainian State placed after the annexation of Crimea from 2014, cutting off the peninsula from the existing access to water, causing many crop damage. specified a fast – carried out in the first weeks after February 24, 2022 – the demolition of the dam is expected to prove, according to Halverson, that in reality Ukraine is – another already – a victim of the relations between politics and food.
Personally, I think that Halverson's thesis may be a bit shot (it is safe to presume that the Russians – if it were indeed specified a large problem – would not wait until 2022 to destruct 1 dam, especially in the territory where de facto they were inactive at war). However, the very link between war and food access is surely legitimate. And erstwhile again, as in the case of the operation of the continent of Africa, an investigation or presumption is not essential for specified a relation to become more than likely.
In fresh weeks, more and more people have entered the media information on mass murder, which Israeli troops carry out on the people of Gaza, gathering around aid distribution centres (food or medical care). It is actual that in these specific, highly drastic cases, the overriding goal of Israelis – which is the full extermination of Gaza's population – would be of a different kind, and the food aspect here would be more symbolic (or biopolitical) than economic-planist. However, 1 step further – taking the macro position for the analysis of events in Gaza – economics are gaining importance, and its relation with the genocide presently taking place is no longer – unfortunately – so absurd.
Such a position – in interview conducted by Rafał Górski for the Institute of civilian Affairs – presents Jarosław Pietrzak, writer and writer, among others the book "Sads of the Tropical: Modern Latin American Cinema as a Political Cinema".
According to Pietrzak, the war in Gaza is simply a experimental ground for modern military systems, produced and then sold by Israel to another countries (these are now mainly automatic technologies, "smart" to the Gazan genocide utilizing AI).
And that request for specified technologies will increase alternatively than decline may consequence from the crisis of the model of capitalism resulting in the birth of the "ecstermist" strategies of modern states, as in the case of Israel. What is an extremist system? As Pietrzak describes it, it is simply a strategy in which “all cumulative crises of capitalism – little and little profit to divide, expanding inequality, little and little inexpensive nature, migration due to climate reasons, constantly exploding armed conflicts – will be regulated simply by the extermination of subsequent populations”. The depleted food resources are part of the many aspects of the crisis outlined by Pietrzak.
In addition to the genocide in Gaza, the State of Israel is besides beginning to intensify activities in the West Bank of Jordan, including Burning Palestinian farms there, forcing them to abandon their native land. It is safe to presume that Israeli settlers will shortly make wasteland and the West Bank He won't stop. be an area – for the mediate East – exceptionally green. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, since the outbreak of the war of October 7, 2023, at least 993 Palestinians were to be killed in the West Bank, and over 7,000 were injured (as of July 13, 2025).
Whether it is the United States or Africa or Palestine, any threads seem to return and form permanent elements of modern – and not necessarily authoritative – food policy.
Colonization can take place in the form of average leases – it can besides consist of economical blackmail – at worst leads to extermination and the return of worst cases of biopolitics.
In all the situations pictured in the “grabbing” and those developed by me, capital plays a key role. And although the actions of the State of Israel would contravene that it is always about external and private influences, taking control of the "public" (Israel is simply a peculiar case of immanent colonization, directed inwards, not outwards), it seems, however, that
The sacrifice remains always the same: a people deprived of the earth, both in the sense of place and the means of existence.
