At the World Summit on Food Security in Rome, U.S. civil society organizations expressed concern with the Obama administration's support for increasing intensive, large-scale agriculture production and trade expansion as a solution to rising global hunger - failed approaches that have actually contributed to the global food crisis.

A letter signed by 23 U.S. organizations questioned why the administration has not recognized the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge (IAASTD) report, supported by over 50 countries, "which represents global consensus about what course international investment in agriculture should take to meet social and environmental goals. Instead, the Obama administration aggressively promoted the use of patented genetically engineered seeds and increasing large-scale production practices.