PRICE RISE IN A SINGLE YEAR March 2007-March 2008

31%

74%87%

130%

CORN RICE SOYA WHEATSource: FAO

More people = More need for food

POPULATION EXPLOSION

INCREASED DEMAND FOR MEAT AND DAIRY

More people in India and China (the world’s two largest countries) have joined the middle class. A billion more people will join the earth’s middle class by 2030. The middle class eats

more meat and dairy (increasing nutrition). So, the available grain crops go to feed the animals (meat and dairy sources) instead of to feed the people.

Source: UN

ENVIRONMENT/WEATHER

There is a noticeable increase in natural disasters. Examples: The cyclone in Burma,

drought in Australia, the tsunami in Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

Image: www.sxc.hu

SOIL DEGRADATION

Causes include industrialization, erosion and salination.

INCREASE IN THE PRICE OF OIL

The price of oil directly affects the cost of transporting food around the world.

An increase in oil price = an increase in food prices.

Source: FAO, Image: www.sxc.hu

DEMAND FOR BIOFUEL

Currently 20% of corn crops are turned into ethanol (biofuel).

By 2016, this figure will rise to 32%.

Source: International Energy Agency (U.S. figures) Image: Michael Ramirez

POLITICAL FACTORS

In places like Burma and Haiti, political factors can stop the flow of food from foreign aid agencies like the World Food Programme (WFP).

Image: www.sxc.hu

The Facts: According to the United Nations, 854 million people don’t have enough food to live a healthy and active lifestyle. The poorest of the world’s poor spend 50-80% of their income on food. We can expect 100 million more people to slide into extreme poverty in the next few years. The UN calls the current situation the “worse food crisis” in 40 years.

Image: WFP