Pope Francis’ Encyclical, Food and Agriculture

Synonyms

Agricultural technology; GMOs; Industrial agriculture; Integral ecology; Papal encyclical; Vatican

Introduction

Pope Francis’ much discussed papal encyclical, Laudato Si (Praise Be): On Care for Our Common Home, (Francis 2015) is addressed not just to Catholics or Christians but to the entire global community, to all of humanity. The encyclical is well known for its attention to climate change and to broader environmental questions related to the Creation and, as well, our response to those issues. But the encyclical also deals with matters of agriculture, raising many questions of agricultural ethics and values. This attention includes a discussion on GMOs and, as well, broader questions of large-scale industrial versus small-scale farming as a means to feed the world. As with all issues in the encyclical, questions of intergenerational equity and social justice, including a preferential option for the poor, and thereby questions of morality and moral choice, permeate the...