This past year has seen much media attention to the rapid increase in the price of staple food grains and oi! seeds around the world and the effect that this is having on food prices. This state of affairs is attributed to a combination of factors, but there can be no doubt that the rapid increase in the price of petroleum is paramount. Diversion of food grains and oil seeds to biofuel production has substantially increased demand for these commodities. Producers everywhere are faced with higher fuelcosts, and nitrogen and other chemical fertilizers are in short supply and at least twice as expensive as a year earlier. In addition, climate related reductions in arable land and water availability and significant crop failures related to weather mustbe considered. Some blame those speculating in commodity futures and others have pointed to the declining value of the US dollar and its effect on commodity prices. Finally, there is the rapidly increasing demand for food and feed grains in China and other emerging economies. Consumers in these countries are eating more meat, which means that demand for feed grains spirals ever higher.
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