Rising food prices may be a mixture of blessing and curse for the world’s poor according to the Canadian Foodgrains Bank’s senior policy advisor.
Although higher food costs burden poor consumers, they can help small farmers; higher food prices can mean larger profits for producers, and larger profits can create more employment as farmers increase production and hire more workers, noted Stuart Clark. But such production increases can also be risky if the prices don’t last.
Sudden rises in food prices, such as those happening now, “only add to the risks for poor farmers, especially if prices drop rapidly, as they did in 2008,” Clark said in a press release.
According to a report from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, prices for commodities like meat, dairy and cereal grains increased four per cent in December 2010, the highest monthly increase on record and the sixth consecutive rise in price.
According to Clark, who also heads CFGB’s food task force, what is needed is a way to even out prices – balancing farmers’ need to receive a fair return for their commodities with consumers’ ability to purchase them. Stable food prices could also benefit developed nations, allowing producers to better estimate their expected returns.
In June, G20 agriculture ministers will meet in Paris to address this problem. “As a major exporter, Canada has a strong reason, and a good opportunity, to support moves that ensure reliable global food supplies at predictable prices,” Clark said. “At the same time, Canada would also be contributing to reducing the threat of increasing hunger, something all Canadians would support.” – CFGB
