(ANSA) - Rome, February 16, 2015 - Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan said Monday that Milan Expo 2015 will raise crucial policy issues related to global food security as well as consumer awareness.
    Speaking at a meeting of officials at the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), a United Nations Development agency based in Rome, Padoan said the world's fair that begins in May "provides an opportunity to reflect on the contradictions of our world".
    The theme of the six-month long Expo is Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life.
    That should stimulate debate around "conscious political choices and increased consumer awareness," Padoan said.
    Policy issues grow out of such food contradictions as the fact that worldwide, some 800 million people are chronically malnourished, while at the same time, millions of others die from diseases linked to diets that are too rich, said Padoan.
    Further, about a third of all food produced is lost or wasted annually.
    Better political and consumer choices are necessary to resolve these contradictions, as well as more efficient production and distribution methods, he said.
    "We need to use the best technology to increase the production of food and create a balance between food security and the efficiency of the market," he said.
    Treating food solely as a commodity on financial markets also bears a high price, Padoan suggested.
    Speculation in markets has, at times, led to jumps in the price of some food products including corn and rice that are at the base of millions of peoples' diets.
    "(We must remember) the volatility of food prices could have effects on lives of many people," said Padoan.