notes on food crisis

As the food crisis continues, it's a good idea to find the causes and possible solutions. Most will lay the blame squarely on the governments of some developed states. The subsidies to produce ethanol, rather than food, that they grant their farmers has lowered the supply, increased the demand, and raised the global price of food. Jean Ziegler, UN special rapporteur on the right to food, has blamed such policies for creating mass starvation and has said they amount to "silent mass murder". Canada is very involved in this process, to be sure, because "Canada's Conservative government, playing to the farm lobby and a coterie of rent-seeking corporations, has showered millions on the biofuels market."

Of course, like most things, this is not a simple issue. Taking biofuels out of the equation will not necessarily solve this problem. Some say monocrops (the mass production of a single food in a given environment) is the real cause of the current food crisis...but not too many people have been talking about that.

Anyways, we should only hope this food crisis will be resolved immediately and lead to clear and practical reforms for a more equitable and just future.