(ENS) As agriculture ministers from the Group of 20 (G20) nations meet in Paris, France, this week to discuss how to combat food shortage and soaring prices, Presiding Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori has written to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, urging “consideration of the needs of people in developing countries most affected by food insecurity.”
Jefferts Schori, noting that most of the Anglican Communion’s 80 million members live in developing countries, said: “The focus on food at this year’s G20 represents an important recognition by the world’s leaders that rising food prices present a potential crisis for areas of the world most affected by hunger and malnutrition, especially Africa and South and Southeast Asia.”
Lots of suggestions, but not one of them is to stop paying US farmers for NOT planting crops, or stop funding the ‘food to replace oil’ measures that our government is doing. Amazing ignorance of some of the major causes of food shortage and price increases….
What is amusing about this article is KJS’s sudden love of Africa and SE Asia. When did that happen?
Rising oil prices raise the price of everything which has to be transported, including food. Modern agricultural methods, an end to using farm land for fuel production, an end to subsidies which limit food production, and introduction of both GM disease-resistant crops and irradiation to prevent waste are all things which would increase food supplies.
Increased supplies of energy would lower energy costs which would translate to lower food production costs on highly mechanized farms. Decisions have consequences; corn-to-ethanol, soybeans-to-diesel, the EPA damaging oil and coal production, all of these eventually impact food costs—particularly for those developing countries least able to deal with the increases. Yet you will never see KJS advocating policy changes which would actually mitigate the problem………..wouldn’t sell well to her base of support.
I found this when I googled about agriculutaral trade laws and developing nations. I don’t know why I was urged to do so as it is not a subject I am much at hand with.
http://www.ifpri.org/sites/default/files/pubs/media/trade/trade.pdf
Trust me, folks; Katharine Jefferts Schori doesn’t do a thing [i]without a sneaky and ulterior motive.[/i]