G-20 Announces Measures to Stabilize Food Prices
- Posted on June 23, 2011 at 6:10am by
Scott Baker
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PARIS (AP) — The largest economies in the world agreed Thursday to a series of measures to stabilize world food prices after years of sudden fluctuations caused global instability, especially in poorer countries.
French Agriculture Minister Bruno Le Maire said the G-20 summit of agriculture ministers had agreed to calm the world market by establishing a transparent system to track global supplies, emergency food reserves, engage in more research into new wheat strains and create a rapid response mechanism to deal with drought in producer countries.
“It is a tour de force for the international community that lets you still believe in the power of solidarity and working together to address the big questions facing the planet, like the future of world agriculture,” he told journalists.
Rising energy prices prompted a spike in food prices in 2008 that caused worldwide hardship and sparked riots in a number of developing countries.
In a reflection of the seriousness of the crisis, this is the first time agriculture and food security have been made a G20 summit topic.
“We all recognize the necessity of putting in place on the market of agricultural products new rules and regulations,” Le Maire said.
World Bank President Robert Zoellick appeared at the ministers’ side during the news conference to express his support for the new measures and the seriousness of price swings.
“We are not going to be able to stop food prices from going up and down, but we can smooth out the swings and we can protect the poor whether they are small farmers or consumers,” he said.
One of the key aspects of the new accord is the Agricultural Market Information System that would stave off panic food speculation by making instantly available to all countries the state of world food stocks and consumption, Zoellick explained.
“What we saw when prices started to surge in 2008 was that the lack of information on stocks and availability can lead to panic in markets and panic is what leads to price hikes,” said Zoellick. “Uncertainty leads to volatility.”
The jump in the price of wheat and other basic foodstuffs in 2008 sparked bread riots in many countries and led to widespread unrest.
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LibertyMama
Posted on June 24, 2011 at 10:15amI just keep thinking, we have the numbers on our side. With over 300 Million Americans… if just 10% aren’t lemmings – that’s still 30 million. And that’s a damned big number to try to control. It will take a hell-of-a-lot of courage, but even the Nazi’s would have been put down quickly if the people had refused to stay in their houses while people were shot in the streets.
Report Post »symbolsofa
Posted on June 24, 2011 at 3:17amWASHINGTON, GEORGE, in Maxims of George Washington by A. A. Appleton & Co.
Report Post »“They (the Jews) work more effectively against us, than the enemy’s armies. They are a hundred times more dangerous to our liberties and the great cause we are engaged in… It is much to be lamented that each state, long ago, has not hunted them down as pest to society and the greatest enemies we have to the happiness of America.”
AMERICANS WILL REALIZE ONE DAY HOW JEWS HAVE DESTROYED THEIR ECONOMY AND PUSHED THE WHOLE AMERICAN CHRISTIANS IN BANKRUPTCY BY THEIR CUNNING AND DECEITFUL NATURE.
“In the U.S. cotton states, after the war… the Jew came down in force, set up shop on the plantation, supplied all the Negroes’ wants on credit, and at the end of the season was the proprietor of the *****’s share of the present crop and part of the next one. Before long, the whites detested the Jew. (1)
The Jew is being legislated out of Russia. The reason is not concealed. The movement was instituted because the Christian peasant stood no chance against his commercial abilities. The Jew was always ready to lend on a crop. When settlement day came, he owned the crop; the next year he owned the farm – like Joseph. (2)
In the England of John’s time everybody got into debt to the Jew. He gathered all lucrative enterprises into his hands. He was the King of Commerce. He had to be banished from the realm. For like reasons, Spain had to banish him 400 years ago, and Austria a couple of centuries later.
STAR SPANGLED SPAMMER
Posted on June 24, 2011 at 4:14amOk….I’m really gonna need you to eat a pork sandwich have a Budweiser and read a playboy in order to convince me that your not a Muslim?
If your not a Muslim? Then your just a schmuck with some Antisemitic issues. Nazi maybe?
Oh and try to keep it short Sporto, nobody wants to read your novel here ; )
(“trust nobody”)
Report Post »paulusmaximus
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 8:19pmFeds flood farm land, drought’s around world, Obama signs executive order for rural planning , G20 leads the way with food price stabilisation. I’m sure its just a coincident. Watch the other hand!
Report Post »miles from nowhere
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 4:55pmIs the American tax payer footing the bill again?
Report Post »Texas Grasshopper
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 4:29pmhmmm …speaking about food
http://beforeitsnews.com/story/744/730/Watch_Fox_News_Busted:_Sold_Out_to_Monsanto.html
Report Post »Stu Pedaso
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 3:37pmWish I did not live in a townhouse. I have no place to grow. We have to shop the farmers markets and store what we can.
Report Post »I do agree though if we stopped using our food for fuel we would be much better off!
Cold War Vet
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 10:50pm@ STU PEDASO
I love farmers markets! That’s the way to go. Local food, local business.
Report Post »fitsgibbons
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 3:17pm@DOCTOR’S LABOR madsen is that you?
Report Post »Cold War Vet
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 3:07pmBe the anti-socialist. Keep the government out of your kitchen, your wallet, bedroom, car, luggage, pants, email, library, your crops and your HOUSE. And anywhere else they have no business going…
Report Post »Cold War Vet
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 3:02pmJust what we need. More government. Big governments of the world, sticking their noses into the food supply, so they can screw that up too.
If the socialist/communist morons would let free enterprise run the country, especially in agriculture, instead of jacking around with wasteful, ineffectual ethanol programs and agricultural subsidies, making energy, transportation and food costs “necessarily skyrocket” I imagine the whole world eat better.
But the socialists don’t want to do that. They want to severely limit food supplies and establish more control over populations to satisfy their own greed and power lust, while blaming economic shortfalls and shortages on capitalism and free enterprise. All they need to do this are some corrupt mainstream media networks to adore them, and a few million mindless moonbats to cheer them on in exchange for the false promise of a something-for-nothing utopia, or a chance to govern a part of it. Liberal progressives are evil.
Report Post »Ghandi was a Republican
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 2:43pmThey are going to starve the populations that America has always fed.. They are going to bankrupt America while she tries to save as many as she can. They will carbon tax the machinery and fuels used for agriculture. Any questions?
Report Post »Millions will starve to death across the World when the trucks stop rolling.. Neighbor will turn on neighbor! It’s like something right out of Alinsky!
Cbluiyz
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 1:44pmYou are right about the licensing and labeling…. I’m sure that companies who own the patent on the genetically altered seeds are rubbing their hands at the idea of “new wheat strains”, and sit in the winds to release them. People go hungry now in other countries not because they cannot grow their own food, but because their governments have taken over their lands to grow the crop that will pay back their loans to other countries
Report Post »1000kva
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 1:04pmLouise mentioned all the points but missed the tracking of “CONSUMPTION”. Factor in the FDA going after local suppliers, like farmer’s markets, in the Food Safety bill that was recently signed and we have a disaster on our hands. It won’t be too long before all growing of foodstuffs, even backyard gardens, will have to be licensed, food will have to be tagged with place of origin and food sharing between families will become illegal. The framework is being built up a little more each day.
Report Post »louise
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 1:15pm100KVA….
Report Post »You are absolutely right about that! thanks so much for your comment
louise
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 12:50pmI have one more thought to add here. grown your own food and buy locally. turn thos useless lawns into food production for your family.
Report Post »STAR SPANGLED SPAMMER
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 12:22pmAs long as my McDouble stays at .99 cents, I wont riot in the streets.
(“trust nobody”)
Report Post »litrex18
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 11:51amThis is just another cog in the ever-spinning wheel on the train to global government.
Report Post »louise
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 12:48pmI agree. As I read this article these phrases jumped out to me:
Establishing a system to track global supplies
Emergency food reserves
Food security
To most people these sound fairly innocent. But when you take into account the big picture, they are not ‘innocent’.
Report Post »MOLLYPITCHER
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 11:46amIf we didn’t use our food for fuel, food prices would be less of a problem.
Report Post »A Doctors Labor Is Not My Right
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 12:09pmGrow your own food, America.
And create community based barter and gold/silver markets.
Alt-Market (Alternative Market movement)
Report Post »http://www.alt-market.com
Susan Harkins
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 12:14pmOh boy!
The govt has come to the rescue of the markets — again.
Isn’t this grand! Now there will be subsidized “bread” (& circuses) for EVERYONE!
Party while ya can!
Report Post »Susan Harkins
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 12:16pm@A Doctors Labor
We will not be able to — you need to read the U.N.’s ARTICLE 21, and then see what Obozo signed just recently.
Growing your own food would amount to “independence”. This monstrosity of an “excuse for a government” cant allow that.
Report Post »louise
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 12:39pmMOLLYPITCHER
You are right.
Report Post »cemerius
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 12:46pmMolly…you are ABSOLUTELY correct! The measures proposed sound nice when a politician regurgetates them but otherwise they are just touchy feely measures…….get rid of Ethanol and DRILL BABY DRILL!!
Report Post »TexasCommonSense
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 1:25pmMOLLYPITCHER, that and stop devaluing the world’s reserve currency, the US dollar.
Report Post »Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 3:07pm@MollyPitcher:
Indeed, we need to concentrate on America first; let the rest of the world deal with itself, and if we then have extra availible from the harvests – THEN transport it to them. America is one of the most productive of farming and ranching nations…with the exception of a POTUS who allows the richest of the farms along the Missisippi river to be deliberatly flooded, and the richest land in TX to go up in flames for political revenge reasoning.
Report Post »avenger
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 6:34pmwow..we are in deep shet when these aholes start meddling…
Report Post »american1st
Posted on June 23, 2011 at 7:24pmdo you think these people read Atlas Shrugged and 1884, and instead of taking it as a warning about how bad doing these ideas would make the world, thought they were reading instruction manuals???
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