FOOD.

We in America have long been blessed with cheap food. Perhaps too much so, given our generally sedentary lifestyle and our expanding waistlines. Looks like that might be changing, as those of us who have a budget are forced to make some cuts.

Across much of the world, people don't have room to make those cuts without going into hunger.

And it's only going to get worse.

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Corn Crop Damaged by Midwest Deluge as Prices Soar

June 10 (Bloomberg) -- Rainstorms sweeping the biggest corn states in the U.S. are damaging a crop that's already failing to keep pace with global demand for food, fuel and cattle feed.
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Corn rose to a record $6.73 a bushel yesterday in Chicago, extending this year's gain to 44 percent. Yields in the U.S. may fall 10 percent short of government forecasts, the biggest drop in 13 years, and send prices up another 34 percent as storms delay planting, stunt growth and leech fertilizer from the soil, said Terry Jones, who farms more than 6,000 acres near Williamsburg, Iowa.

State-Wide Drought Expected To Drive Up Food Prices

Fresno, CA (KFSN) -- The declaration of a state-wide drought by Governor Schwarzenegger may be just the beginning of a long, difficult summer for everyone.
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With farmers on the valley's west-side forced to ration their water supply, they're making tough decisions on which crops to save. Permanent crops like almonds will take precedent over many vegetables.

Farm crisis spooks Argentine economy

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Argentina, one of the world's biggest breadbaskets, should be rolling in cash as world food prices soar.

Instead, soy, wheat and corn have sat for weeks in silos as farmers protesting new export taxes suspended sales.

Farmers were lifting their strike Sunday night in a last-ditch effort at a third round of talks. But their three-month standoff with the government has already paralyzed the rural economy, caused scattered food shortages and tanked the new president's popularity.

And continued stalemate could spike global grain prices at a time when food costs are already high.

'Food price jump is a bad omen for market'

MUMBAI: The problem of rising food prices could be larger than what we have imagined and could have an implication on the market as well, according to a report by Credit Suisse. The foodgrain inventories in Asia are touching 30-year lows. The food demand-supply balance in most parts of Asia, including India, has been worsening for a while and the demand is expected to grow by 3.7% to 3.8% a year. However, the Credit Suisse report notes , Policy focus on the growing gap has been absent because of the seemingly tiny agriculture deficit relative to stocks.”

From Spam sales to rice riots – the food crisis bites

The food crisis has gripped the whole world in the past year, from the wealthiest countries to the poorest: from Japan, where beef has vanished off school menus in favour of less costly chicken or pork, and the US, where sales of Spam have shot up 10 per cent, to the poorest nations, where 70 or 80 per cent of people's income goes on food (in the UK the figure is 10 per cent).

Thirty-seven countries are confronted by a crisis in food costs, according to the UN's
Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), while riots have broken out in two dozen.

The Economics of World Hunger

(NaturalNews) Food has become the new gold. Investors weary of the real-estate bubble-burst have poured millions of dollars into grain futures. This has succeeded in driving up prices even more. Now we are witnessing a global panic as nations are waging a run on our wheat harvest.Foreign investors have begun to stockpile wheat by placing orders on U.S. grain exchanges that are two or three times larger than normal. This has led U.S. mills to place large orders in the fear that there would soon be no wheat left at all.

The U.S. has no remaining grain reserves

“According to the May 1, 2008 CCC inventory report there are o­nly 24.1 million bushels of wheat in inventory, so after this sale there will be o­nly 2.7 million bushels of wheat left the entire CCC inventory,” warned Matlack. “Our concern is not that we are using the remainder of our strategic grain reserves or humanitarian relief. AAM fully supports the action and all humanitarian food relief. Our concern is that the U.S. has nothing else in our emergency food pantry. There is no cheese, no butter, no dry milk powder, no grains or anything else left in reserve. The o­nly thing left in the entire CCC inventory will be 2.7 million bushels of wheat which is about enough wheat to make ½ of a loaf of bread for each of the 300 million people in America.”

Aid groups feel the pinch of rising food, gas prices

WASHINGTON (RNS)—Dramatic increases in food and gas prices are leaving some religious hunger-relief groups praying for relief.

Problems already were apparent in 2006, but U.S. churches now report increased difficulty getting meals to people who need them. Food distributors see a perfect storm—a huge jump in requests from new clients, decreased donations and a thinning food supply.

Still Higher Food Prices

The U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development recently predicted that commodity prices for the coming decade are going to rise higher and higher.

• 20 Projected percentage increase of average prices of beef and pork for 2008–17, compared with 1998–2007
• 30 Projected percentage increase of average prices of raw and white sugar for 2008–17, compared with 1998–200740 Projected percentage increase of average prices of wheat and maize for 2008–17, compared with 1998–2007
• 80 Projected percentage increase of average prices of vegetable oil for 2008–17, compared with 1998–2007