World Food Program warns of

‘silent tsunami’ of hunger

LONDON – Ration cards. Genetically modified crops. The end of pile-it-high, sell-it-cheap supermarkets. These possible solutions to the first global food crisis since World War II — which the World Food Program says already threatens 20 million of the poorest children — are complex and controversial. And they may not even solve the problem as demand continues to soar.

A “silent tsunami” of hunger is sweeping the world’s most desperate nations, said Josette Sheeran, the WFP’s executive director, speaking Tuesday at a London summit on the crisis. The skyrocketing cost of food staples, stoked by rising fuel prices, unpredictable weather and demand from India and China, has already sparked sometimes violent protests across the Caribbean, Africa and Asia.

The price of rice has more than doubled in the last five weeks, she said. The World Bank estimates food prices have risen by 83 percent in three years… news.yahoo.com

Posted by John Malloy on 04/23/2008. Filed under International. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry