Urgent actions needed to prevent recurring food crises
A Chinese girl buys a cabbage at a vegetable stall in Beijing, China on 04 September 2010. China has ordered local leaders to cool a surge in food prices by raising vegetable production in a bid to ensure food security over rising food costs in the global market. (Photo: AAP)

Author: Shenggen Fan, IFRI

Three years after the 2007-08 food crisis, food prices are again rising rapidly, fueling new concerns over the food security of poor people.

The global price of maize has more than doubled between June 2010 and mid April 2011, while that of wheat has almost doubled In many developing countries, including in East Asia, domestic food prices have increased sharply as shown in the charts below, driving up food inflation. Read more…