Something to Think About

Here is an article entitled "Soaring prices threaten new food crisis" (published in the London "Financial Times" Oct. 8, 2010).

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/12b06cee-d300-11df-9ae9-00144feabdc0.html

Fears of a global food crisis swept the world’s commodity markets as prices for staples such as corn, rice and wheat spiralled after the US government warned of “dramatically” lower supplies.

An especially hot summer in the US, droughts in countries including Russia and Brazil and heavy rain in Canada and Europe have hit many grain and oilseed crops this year. This has raising concern of a severe squeeze in food supplies and a repeat of the 2007-08 food crisis.

The US Department of Agriculture, in a closely watched report, predicted that the country’s stocks of corn would halve to their lowest levels in 14 years.

It warned of a “much tighter supply picture” for corn and barley, the two main feedstocks used to fatten cows, sheep, pigs and poultry.....

“I think we have a food crisis right now,” said Hussein Allidina, head of commodities research at Morgan Stanley.

In Chicago, the prices of agricultural commodities jumped so sharply that they hit limits imposed on daily movement by the city’s futures exchange, the biggest in the world.....

“This revision highlights that we are in a very fragile supply and demand situation,” said Abdolreza Abbassian, senior economist at the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation in Rome.

Of course, "if ye are prepared ye shall not fear."