Food riots, geopolitical tensions, global inflation and increasing hunger among the planet’s poorest people are the likely effects of a new surge in world food prices, which have hit an all-time high according to the United Nations.
The UN’s index of food prices ”“ an international basket comprising wheat, corn, dairy produce, meat and sugar ”“ stands at its highest since the index started in 1990, surpassing even the peaks seen during the 2008 food crisis, which prompted civil disturbances from Mexico to Indonesia.
“We are entering danger territory,” said the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation’s chief economist, Abdolreza Abbassian.
One reason for the higher food prices? Ethanol, made from corn.
Exactly, sophie, and I am not entirely sure this isn’t yet more hysterical scare-mongering.
The problem is, food aid makes things much worse. Okay, I farm for a living, but let’s imagine I’m a farmer in Outer Chaostan and we’ve had some significant drought. Yields are cut in half. Food prices double.
The “world community” decides to act and provide substantial food aid.
How does my business compete with FREE ? Can I survive another year? Probably not. Then there’s even less food, and the cycle turns around yet again.
Little things could make a big difference. I live in what is basically a treed mountain where a quarter inch of topsoil (if that) covers rock. We have replaced what trees we can with fruit trees. We have some acorn bearing white oaks, and we have planted jeruselem artichokes (sun chokes – sort of edible tuber similar to potatoes) everywhere. Sunchokes are basically weeds that grow very well most everywhere (including in the rock that passes for my back yard), and have no real pests. They taste pretty good. Based on how well they did last year, I anticipate that in 2 years we might be able to survive on a diet of sunchokes, acorns and what we can grow in our (raised bed) vegitable garden. If, instead of planting shade trees or ornamentals on side walks all trees were expected to be fruit bearing, and all median strips and other “waste land” were sowed in something that folks could actually eat, there would be no hunger in the land.
Isn’t that what the prophets told Israel to do? To not harvest the corners of the fields or glean their fields, so that the poor and the stranger would be able to survive?
We were able to feed ourselves pretty well with victory gardens during WWII. Little things can still make a huge difference.