The world’s food crisis has reached new levels of alarm.
The World Food Program in an “extraordinary emergency appeal” says it needs $500 million by May 1 to avoid cutting rations to some of the world’s most impoverished regions.
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says, “The rapidly escalating crisis of food availability around the world has reached emergency proportions,” adding that as many as 100 million people could be pushed further into poverty because of it.
Food prices have doubled as commodities prices have soared around the world. This puts people on the brink over the edge and may cause widespread starvation and rioting (some of which we’ve already see in Cairo, Mexico City, and the Philippines). The crisis is so bad that this week President Bush released $200 million in emergency food funding to help nations in need.
Walk through the slums of Mumbai, wonder out into the rural areas of Third World countries, as I have, and you’ll see how little margin for food error there is. This is serious. These are lives.
The World Food Bank reports that its reserves are the lowest they have been in about 30 years. Rice and wheat have become so expensive that nations have stopped exporting them. This causes panic and problems the likes of which the world has never seen. Meanwhile, recent health reports show the obesity rate for US adults stands at 64%. The Environmental Protection Agency says one of the most common items at landfills is tossed food.
There is a strange imbalance in the world that needs correcting. And we needs policies to create sustainable results…now, before the crisis worsens.
Thomas M. Kostigen is The New York Times bestselling coauthor of
April 24th, 2008 at 10:07 am
After reading this post and others like it, I’m truly ashamed to be one of the 64% of Americans who are overweight. I’m going to figure out what I’ve spent on food in April — including dining out, entertaining, drinks and coffee — cut that in half in May, and send the remaining half of that money to the World Food Program. If my reduced intake in May forces me to lose some of the excess weight I’m carrying around (40 pounds), all the better. Thanks for the update.
April 24th, 2008 at 1:29 pm
[…] about that. Shame on me. At least I can feed my children. Unlike millions of desperate parents around the world. It breaks my heart AND makes me angry AND leaves me bewildered, wondering what more can we do?? […]