EurActiv – As the world’s population approaches ten billion, issues like climate
change, growing scarcity of oil and availability of quality land and
water are challenging the planet’s capacity to produce enough food
for everyone - a paradigm shift that could potentially pave the way for
a new global ‘food crunch’. …
Increased demand for food stems from global population growth. The world’s population currently stands at six billion, but is expected to rise to about nine billion by 2020 before stabilising at ten billion around 2050.
In addition to population growth and increased demand for basic foods like wheat, demand for meat and dairy products is steadily growing, as emerging economies like China and India become richer and their populations adopt Western-style, resource-intensive eating habits. According to the World Bank, demand for food in general is expected to increase by 50% by 2050, and demand for meat by 85%. …
Recent food price increases have lead to violent protests in Latin America, Africa and Asia, demonstrating the immediate impact the rise in basic commodity prices has had on the world’s poorest populations. In spring 2008, Thailand, Burma, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia agreed in principle to form a rice price-fixing body, the Organisation of Rice Exporting Countries (OREC), amid soaring costs of basic grain. Such a food cartel, to be set up by 2012, would be similar to the oil cartel OPEC.
Developing countries which are net importers of food have been hit hardest by the hike in food pricesexternal , while net food exporting countries are making large profits. However, in the long term, rising food prices could help rural communities in some developing countries to escape poverty, increasing farmers’ income.
Higher agricultural prices could increase public and private investments to programmes that improve productivity and infrastructure and spread production to marginal land. This in turn might stop increasing urbanisation, as higher wages and increased labour demand would incite people to stay in rural areas. (03/15/09)
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