Editorial: A bitter harvest | AsianPacificPost.com | Chinese newspaper, Filipino newspaper, Philippines newspaper, Philippine newspaper and media publ

Editorial: A bitter harvest

bio diesel Two centuries ago, Thomas Malthus, the English political economist, predicted that the planet would fall into a food crisis because of population growth.

He prophesied that there would be misery, vice, war and pestilence and that the poor would be reduced to severe distress.

The Malthusian theory is now unfolding at a rapid pace in the poorer parts of our planet.

Grain stocks are at their lowest in 30 years.

Food inflation, the World Bank says, could push at least 100 million people into poverty, wiping out all the gains the poorest billion have made during almost a decade of economic growth.

Asian countries such as Cambodia, China, Vietnam, India and Pakistan have curbed rice exports to ensure supplies for their own populations.

There have been food riots in Haiti, the Philippines, Ethiopia, Indonesia and several other nations.

Global food prices have spiraled out of control with the average price of food rising by 56 per cent, with wheat rising by 92 per cent and rice – the staple of half the world – by 96 per cent.

Even here in our comfortable Canada, we are seeing and feeling the impact of the global food crisis.

But why is this happening and why is there a “food shortage”?

Some place the blame squarely on high fuel costs, others on rising consumption in developing nations.

The root of this crisis actually lies closer to home.

When you cut through all the analysis, one issue stands out – We don’t have enough grains because we are using them to feed cows and our cars and not people.

The creation of ethanol, especially by rich nations, by providing subsidies to farmers has forced food prices out of whack. Like corn feed for cattle, ethanol creates an artificial, state-subsidized demand, causing the prices of all grains to skyrocket.

The World Bank this month said U.S. ethanol ate up nearly all of the increased global maize production from 2004-07, when the crop's prices rose most sharply. Similarly, the production of bio-fuels in industrial nations has been widely blamed for the staggering price hikes of maize, wheat, soya and other food staples relied on for basic nutrition in developing countries.

Because of this, the era of cheap food is gone.

Our only hope now is reasonably priced food.

For that to happen we need our governments to halt subsidies for fuels made from food crops.

We need to stop feeding our cars and start feeding our people.

Comments

Add New

Tue, 03/16/2010 - 23:19 — Anonymous

one day i went shopping

one day i went shopping outside,and in an ed hardy store,I found some kinds of ed hardy i love most they are Your website is really good Thank you for the information edhardy com official site edhardy com official site www edhardy clothes com www edhardy clothes com don ed hardy don ed hardy ed hardy.com ed hardy.com ed hardy clothing official website ed hardy clothing official website cheap ed hardy sunglasses cheap ed hardy sunglasses ed hardy canada ed hardy canada edhardy com clothing edhardy com clothing www edhardy com au www edhardy com au discount ed hardy clothes discount ed hardy clothes shop ed hardy shop ed hardy Thank you for the information

Sun, 03/14/2010 - 23:36 — Anonymous

tiffany4u

tiffany silver necklace to fit every taste and budget, featuring every metal and gemstone. In our online store,you can search among just tiffany silver bracelet & Co. necklaces such as Sliver Necklaces,Tiffany Necklace,tiffany heart, Beaded necklaces and Chain necklaces, select from a wide variety of gemstones. From kitschy to classic, fantastic quality, Wholesale Tiffany jewelry jewelry necklaces

tiffany bangle tiffany bracelet tiffany rings tiffany cuff links tiffany key rings tiffany money clips ...Tiffany jewellry hot sale now with discount. we provides the best tiffany earrings/a>,tiffany rings, including Necklaces, Bracelets, Earrings, tiffany on sale and ...

Sun, 03/14/2010 - 18:43 — Anonymous

d

we will do our best to provide you the products ofreplica handbags
herve leger dress
Gucci Handbags
Burberry Handbags
Swiss Watch Brand
Chanel Watchesand designer handbags,your satisfaction is what we wish !

Sun, 03/07/2010 - 19:32 — Anonymous

vs

Aubry appears in louis vuitton Spring Collection 2010Your comment is touching but it sounds louis vuitton speedy, I'm so sick of you and your racist kind harping on about being previously disadvantaged, and that the whites had it so good, we had to work for what we had, the louis vuitton shop didn't give us anything back then, louis vuitton replica, and today we still have what we have because when we meet adversity or poverty we just work harder, replica louis vuitton and our children and we teach them of no work no pay. What are you looking for now a free ride, the ANC has had plenty of time to give you that! Or Super louis vuitton Malema to rescue you.

Points scored in the Acts counted in the early rounds of the louis vuitton Cup itself, which resulted in Emirates Team New Zealand winning the right to challenge Alinghi in the luis vitton Cup race.At the announcement in Dubai handbag outlet month that the emirate would host a leg of the louis vuitton pouch at Dubai International Marina Club in November, Louis Vuitton Replica Bags, the chief executive of louis vuitton, said that the LVT series “had no intention of competing with or replacing the America’s Cup”.

Fri, 03/05/2010 - 22:59 — Anonymous

rolex

You can wear [url=http://www.watchesview.com/rolex-watches.html]replica watches[/url] this to any activities you [url=http://www.watchesview.com/rolex-watches.html]rolex watches[/url] have. You can also use this with [url=http://www.watchesview.com/breitling-watches.html]breitling watches[/url] casual wear.This Formula 1 watch is [url=http://www.watchesview.com/cartier-watches.html]cartier watches[/url] so durable that you can wear it [url=http://www.watchesview.com/patek_philippe-watches.html]patek philippe[/url] anywhere. Tag Heuer is not [url=http://www.watchesview.com/omega-watches.html]omega watches[/url] really expensive when think [url=http://www.watchesview.com/omega-watches.html]omega[/url] about. It is affordable due to the fact [url=http://www.watchesview.com/breitling-watches.html]breitling[/url] that it will last long if you know [url=http://www.watchesview.com/cartier-watches.html]cartier[/url] how to take care of it. You can [url=http://www.watchesview.com/audemars_piguet-watches.html]audemars piguet[/url] also give this as a gift to [url=http://www.watchesview.com/montblanc-watches.html]montblanc watches[/url] someone special to your heart. It's [url=http://www.watchesview.com/panerai-watches.html]panerai watches[/url] a watch that is classy and you [url=http://www.watchesview.com/bvlgari-watches.html]bvlgari watches[/url] are not ashamed to give this kind of [url=http://www.watchesview.com/armani-watches.html]armani watches[/url] watch as gift.There is also other [url=http://www.watchesday.com]replica watches[/url] Formula 1 by Tag Heuer, aside from [url=http://www.watchesday.com/tag_heuer-watches.html]tag heuer[/url] automatic, there is also quartz [url=http://www.watchesday.com/rolex-watches.html]rolex watches[/url] type.

Fri, 03/05/2010 - 22:52 — Anonymous

bv

christian louboutin
replica christian louboutin
louboutin
replica Shoes
louboutin Shoes
christian louboutin
louboutin
louboutin
Christian Louboutin Shoes
Handbags
replica Handbags
Louis Vuitton Handbags

Wed, 03/03/2010 - 20:14 — Anonymous

discount women's ugg elsey boots 5596 online sales

YS0304A9 Cunning proceeds from want of capacity.Clean your finger,before you point at my spots. He that can bear a ugg australia boots reproof,and mend by it,if he is not wise,is in a fair way of being so.Tis hard to be poor and honest:An empty uggs classic cardy sack can hardly stand upright,but if it does,＇tis a stout one!Keep conscience clear,then never fear.When you＇re good to others,you are best to yourselfWhat is serving God?＇Tis doing good ugg boot sale to manA quite conscience sleeps in thunder,but rest and guilt live far adunder.There is no man so bad,but he secretly respects the good.A true great man will neither trample on a worm,nor sneak to an emperpor.Do me the favour to deny me cheap mbt shoes at once.You may be more happy than pinces,if you will be more virtuous.Who has deceiv＇d thee so oft as thy self? Nothing so popular as goodness. Don＇t misinform your doctor nor your lawyer.A good http://www.uggboots4buy.com/ lawyar a bad neighbour.The excellency of hogs is fatness,of men virtue. Don＇t throw stones at your neightbours,if your own windows are glass.Keep flax from fire,youth from gaming.One mend-fault is worth two find-faults,but one find-fault is better than two make-faultsThe mbt shoes clearance sun never repents of the good he does,nor does he ever demand a recompence.

Wed, 03/03/2010 - 20:13 — Anonymous

discount women moncler down jacket sales online

YS0304A8 The measure of a man’s real character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found out moncler jackets.Take time to deliberate, but when the time for action arrives, stop thinking and go in.Life is not fair, get used to it.The ugg adirondack boots world won't care about your self-esteem.
The world will expect you to accomplish something ugg broome boots before you feel good about yourself.You will not make 40 thousand dollars a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice president with a http://www.edhardy-buy.com/ car phone, until you earn both.If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss. He doesn't have ugg boots tenure.Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your grandparents had a different moncler online word for burger flipping; they called it opportunity.If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about our mistakes, learn from them.Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now.

Wed, 03/03/2010 - 20:12 — Anonymous

cheap air jordan 3 shoes online sales

YS0304A7 Activity is the only road to knowledge.A free man obtains cheap jordans knowledge from many sources 1 besides books.A great part to the information I have was acquired by looking up something jordans shoes and finding something else on the way.If a man empties his purse into his head , no man can take it away from him , an investment in air jordans knowledge always pays the best interest.Imagination is more important than knowledge.Knowledge is http://www.nikejordanshoes2sell.com/power.The empty vessels make the greatest sound.Do not, for one repulse, give up the purpose that you resolved to effect.Don't part with your nike dunk illusions. When they are gone you may still exist, but you have ceased to live.I want to bring out the secrets of nature and apply them for the happiness of nike shox man. I don't know of any better service to offer for the short time we are in the world.Ideal is the beacon. Without nike air max shoes ideal, there is no secure direction; without direction, there is no life.If winter comes, can spring be far behind.If you doubt yourself, then indeed you stand on shaky ground.

Wed, 03/03/2010 - 20:06 — Anonymous

cheap nike air max shoes sales online

YS0304A6 Almost any situation ---good or bad--- is affected by the cheap prada shoes attitude we bring to.Perhaps you can’t control your new nike air max job, but you may be able to make other http://www.nikeaf1jordanshoes.com/ changes in your life.The Chinese word for crisis is divided into two characters, one meaning danger and the other meaning wholesale gucci shoes opportunity. The tragedy of life is not so much what men suffer, but what they miss women's nike shox.I find life an exciting business ------ and most exciting when it is lived for others.Young men make great mistakes in life; for one thing, they idealize authentic air jordan shoes love too much.I don’t wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got down to work.Experience is the child of thought, and thought is the child of action. We cannot learn men from books.

Wed, 03/03/2010 - 20:06 — Anonymous

discount ed hardy women long sleeve shirts online sales

YS0304A5 The tragedy of the world is that those who are imaginative have but slight ed hardy clothing experience, and those who are experienced have feeble imagination.The ed hardy hoodies way to win an atomic war is to make certain it never starts.ed hardy shirts Experience is what you get when you don’t get what you want. To make a lasting marriage
we have to overcome self-centeredness.All I am, or can be, I owe to my angel mother.Experience without learning http://www.edfashionclothes.com/ is better than learning without experience.
Experience keeps a dear ed hardy coats school, yet fools will learn in no other.Follow your own course, and let moncler jackets people talk.If you would have a thing well done, you must do it yourself.Nothing is more terrible than ignorance in action. Our moncler online store deeds determine us, much as we determine our deeds.When a man is wrapped up in himself he makes a pretty little package.The secret of being miserable is to have leisure to bother about whether you are happy or not.Optimists always picture themselves accomplishing their goals.

Wed, 02/24/2010 - 18:38 — Anonymous

bvlgari watches

WellPoint BVLGARI Watches Executive BVLGARI Watches Vice BVLGARI Watch President Brad BVLGARI Watch Fluegel BVLGARI said the BVLGARI company

Thu, 02/04/2010 - 23:07 — Anonymous

baba

A man accused of murdering a Chopard swiss replica on a remote island once threatened him with a replica watches handgun, a court has heard.
John Campbell, 59, denies killing former construction Panerai Swiss replica, from Rotherham, South Yorkshire, who moved to Sanday in Orkney around 15 months before his death in June last year.

A swiss replica watches of Edinburgh Castle has been built for the Tag Heuer Swiss Replica. The Tattoo has only left Edinburgh twice. It went to New Zealand in Hublot Swiss replica in 2005.

Thu, 01/28/2010 - 23:29 — Anonymous

Affordable Car Insurance

Affordable Car Insurance quotes
Compare insurance quotes including car insurance, whole life insurance and term life insurance.
Term life insurance. Get affordable car insurance rates comparisons. Compare insurance quotes offering affordable car insurance, whole life insurance, term life insurance, affordable car insurance.
Offers coverage for auto, whole life insurance, term life insurance and more.

Wed, 01/27/2010 - 05:37 — Anonymous

Re

Did you know that essays online service furnished scholars with the bright classification essay just about this good topic. But your article will remain at the peak level of rating.

Mon, 01/25/2010 - 19:44 — Anonymous

wedding dresses Bridesmaid

wedding dresses
Bridesmaid Dresses
Mother Of The Bride Dresses
Flower Girl Dresses

Mon, 01/25/2010 - 19:18 — Anonymous

Excellent post

Thanks for taking the time to discuss this, I feel strongly about it and love learning more on this topic. If possible, as you gain expertise, would you mind updating your blog with more information? It is extremely helpful for me.
wedding dresses/Bridesmaid Dresses/Mother Of The Bride Dresses/Flower Girl Dresses

Sat, 01/16/2010 - 07:53 — Anonymous

Great post redgard

Great Post i think it is amazing.Thx for sharing.. if You would like to Matematyka also check some shool news atPolskiand read some great info about Fizyka

Fri, 01/15/2010 - 22:25 — Anonymous

红日子搬家公司

深圳搬家公司
 深圳搬家
 深圳搬厂公司
 深圳空调加雪种
 深圳福田搬家公司
 深圳罗湖搬家公司
 深圳南山搬家公司
 深圳盐田搬家公司
 深圳宝安搬家公司
 深圳龙华搬家公司
 深圳龙岗搬家公司
 深圳布吉搬家公司
 深圳吊车公司
 深圳搬家到香港
 深圳搬运公司
 深圳货车出租公司
 深圳长途搬家公司

Wed, 12/16/2009 - 02:14 — Anonymous

tiffanyiphone 3gs

tiffany iphone 3gs wholesale china iphone wholesale fashion wholesale casual shoes buy shoes tiffany bracelet tiffany set tiffany ring tiffany earring tiffany necklace tiffany pendant tiffany bangle
无为人生 cheap Tiffany Tiffany jewelry Tiffany & Co Jewelry tiffany silver jewelry Tiffany wholesale wholesale Tiffany wholesale tiffany bracelet cheap tiffany bracelet tiffany bracelet jewelry silver tiffany bracelet wholesale tiffany set cheap tiffany set tiffany set jewelry silver tiffany set wholesale tiffany ring cheap tiffany ring tiffany ring jewelry silver tiffany ring wholesale tiffany earring cheap tiffany earring tiffany earring jewelry silver tiffany earring wholesale tiffany necklace cheap tiffany necklace tiffany necklace jewelry silver tiffany necklace wholesale tiffany pendant cheap tiffany pendant tiffany pendant jewelry silver tiffany pendant wholesale tiffany bangle cheap tiffany bangle tiffany bangle jewelry silver tiffany bangle wholesale tiffany accessories cheap tiffany accessories tiffany accessories jewelry silver tiffany accessories wholesale tiffany charm cheap tiffany charm tiffany charm jewelry silver tiffany charm shoes shoes Article about shoes buy shoes blog shoes blog 无为无为人生的博客

Wed, 12/16/2009 - 02:11 — Anonymous

tiffanyiphone 3gs

Wed, 12/16/2009 - 02:10 — Anonymous

tiffanyiphone 3gs

Tue, 11/24/2009 - 01:54 — Anonymous

When you cut through all the

When you cut through all the analysis, one issue stands out – We don’t have enough grains because we are using them to feed cows and our cars and not people.
tiffany jewelry/tiffany & co jewelry/wholesale tiffany jewelry

Mon, 11/23/2009 - 01:16 — Anonymous

Fashion watches and jewelry

Fashion watches and jewelry gift:) for your lover.here are some good sites for your choice :),most young people like fashion gadgetry,such as bling bling charms,tiffany jewelry,beautiful :) tiffany necklaces,tiffany rings and fashion luxry watches,but most fashion watches was really expensive that many young peopel can't afford to.that while,replica watches began hot :) sale.the most representive is Replica Rolex which used to be called as "Folex"(Fake Rolex) by American.
By the other hand,people has already accept replicas nowadays.Because only need tiny money could achieve the goal which some could thought it for many years.From sara

Write comment

ksharp

32 min 15 sec ago
ksharp

1 hour 26 min ago
ksharp

1 hour 27 min ago
ksharp

1 hour 29 min ago
look see see

2 hours 24 min ago