Two centuries ago, Thomas Malthus, the English political economist, predicted that the planet would fall into a food crisis because of population growth.
He prophesied that there would be misery, vice, war and pestilence and that the poor would be reduced to severe distress.
The Malthusian theory is now unfolding at a rapid pace in the poorer parts of our planet.
Grain stocks are at their lowest in 30 years.
Food inflation, the World Bank says, could push at least 100 million people into poverty, wiping out all the gains the poorest billion have made during almost a decade of economic growth.
Asian countries such as Cambodia, China, Vietnam, India and Pakistan have curbed rice exports to ensure supplies for their own populations.
There have been food riots in Haiti, the Philippines, Ethiopia, Indonesia and several other nations.
Global food prices have spiraled out of control with the average price of food rising by 56 per cent, with wheat rising by 92 per cent and rice – the staple of half the world – by 96 per cent.
Even here in our comfortable Canada, we are seeing and feeling the impact of the global food crisis.
But why is this happening and why is there a “food shortage”?
Some place the blame squarely on high fuel costs, others on rising consumption in developing nations.
The root of this crisis actually lies closer to home.
When you cut through all the analysis, one issue stands out – We don’t have enough grains because we are using them to feed cows and our cars and not people.
The creation of ethanol, especially by rich nations, by providing subsidies to farmers has forced food prices out of whack. Like corn feed for cattle, ethanol creates an artificial, state-subsidized demand, causing the prices of all grains to skyrocket.
The World Bank this month said U.S. ethanol ate up nearly all of the increased global maize production from 2004-07, when the crop's prices rose most sharply. Similarly, the production of bio-fuels in industrial nations has been widely blamed for the staggering price hikes of maize, wheat, soya and other food staples relied on for basic nutrition in developing countries.
Because of this, the era of cheap food is gone.
Our only hope now is reasonably priced food.
For that to happen we need our governments to halt subsidies for fuels made from food crops.
We need to stop feeding our cars and start feeding our people.
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