ID :
29003
Fri, 11/07/2008 - 19:45
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/29003
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U.N. agency links food crisis with global financial meltdown
New York, Nov 7 (PTI) The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (F.A.O.) has cautioned that the impact of the current financial crisis on the agricultural sector could mean a surge in food prices in the coming year even as global cereal production is expected to hit a new record this year.
In its bi-annual report 'Food Outlook', F.A.O. noted that
much of the boost in cereal production took place in developed
countries, where farmers were in a better position to respond
to high prices.
Developing countries, on the other hand, were largely
limited in their capacity to respond to high prices by supply
side constraints on their agricultural sectors.
Concepcion Calpe, one of the main authors of the report,
said this year's record cereal harvest and the recent fall in
food prices should not create a false sense of security.
"For example, if the current price volatility and
liquidity conditions prevail in 2008/09, plantings and output
could be affected to such an extent that a new price surge
might take place in 2009/10, unleashing even more severe food
crises than those experienced recently," she said.
"The financial crisis of the last few months has
amplified downward price movements, contributed to tighten
credit markets, and introduced greater uncertainty about next
year's prospects, so that many producers are adopting very
conservative planting decisions."
F.A.O. pointed out that the surge in food prices over the
past year has increased the number of undernourished people in
the world to an estimated 923 million, and this number could
grow.
"There is a real risk that as a consequence of the
current world economic problems people will have to reduce
their food intake and the number of hungry could rise
further," said Calpe.
To feed a world population of more than nine billion
people by 2050 (around six billion today), global food
production must nearly double, according to F.A.O.
This requires addressing a number of challenges related
to agriculture, including land and water constraints, low
investments in rural infrastructure and agricultural research,
expensive agricultural inputs, and little adaptation to
climate change.
It also requires more investments in agriculture,
machinery, tractors and water pumps, as well as more skilled
and better-trained farmers and more efficient supply chains.
Meanwhile, F.A.O. Director-General Jacques Diouf has
called on U.S. President-elect Barack Obama to make the
eradication of world hunger a priority on his agenda and to
host a world summit on the issue in the first half of next
year.
In a message congratulating Senator Obama on his
election, Diouf said the U.S. should, "in the first semester
of 2009, take a leadership role in convening a World Summit on
Food Security in order to reach a wide and common consensus on
the definitive elimination of hunger from the world."
Heightened awareness of the plight of 923 million hungry
persons as a result of the ongoing global food and financial
crises created a "special window of opportunity for such an
initiative," he added. PTI
In its bi-annual report 'Food Outlook', F.A.O. noted that
much of the boost in cereal production took place in developed
countries, where farmers were in a better position to respond
to high prices.
Developing countries, on the other hand, were largely
limited in their capacity to respond to high prices by supply
side constraints on their agricultural sectors.
Concepcion Calpe, one of the main authors of the report,
said this year's record cereal harvest and the recent fall in
food prices should not create a false sense of security.
"For example, if the current price volatility and
liquidity conditions prevail in 2008/09, plantings and output
could be affected to such an extent that a new price surge
might take place in 2009/10, unleashing even more severe food
crises than those experienced recently," she said.
"The financial crisis of the last few months has
amplified downward price movements, contributed to tighten
credit markets, and introduced greater uncertainty about next
year's prospects, so that many producers are adopting very
conservative planting decisions."
F.A.O. pointed out that the surge in food prices over the
past year has increased the number of undernourished people in
the world to an estimated 923 million, and this number could
grow.
"There is a real risk that as a consequence of the
current world economic problems people will have to reduce
their food intake and the number of hungry could rise
further," said Calpe.
To feed a world population of more than nine billion
people by 2050 (around six billion today), global food
production must nearly double, according to F.A.O.
This requires addressing a number of challenges related
to agriculture, including land and water constraints, low
investments in rural infrastructure and agricultural research,
expensive agricultural inputs, and little adaptation to
climate change.
It also requires more investments in agriculture,
machinery, tractors and water pumps, as well as more skilled
and better-trained farmers and more efficient supply chains.
Meanwhile, F.A.O. Director-General Jacques Diouf has
called on U.S. President-elect Barack Obama to make the
eradication of world hunger a priority on his agenda and to
host a world summit on the issue in the first half of next
year.
In a message congratulating Senator Obama on his
election, Diouf said the U.S. should, "in the first semester
of 2009, take a leadership role in convening a World Summit on
Food Security in order to reach a wide and common consensus on
the definitive elimination of hunger from the world."
Heightened awareness of the plight of 923 million hungry
persons as a result of the ongoing global food and financial
crises created a "special window of opportunity for such an
initiative," he added. PTI
