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Independent research & practical ideas for global prosperity
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Independent research & practical ideas for global prosperity
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June 5, 2009GAO Report Highlights Costs of U.S. Food Aid RestrictionsPosted by Kimberly Ann Elliott in Food & Agriculture, Global Development Tags: Agriculture, Food, Food Aid, Food Crisis, Food Security, Huffington PostThis post originally appeared on the Huffington Post on June 5, 2009. According to a testimony before congress yesterday and a new Government Accountability Office report, congressional restrictions on U.S. food aid raise the costs of delivering it by as much as a third and delay it reaching hungry people by up to 100 days. When donors purchase food locally or regionally, it not only gets to needy people faster and more cheaply, it may also better match local preferences and nutrition needs. Yet, in the midst of last year’s global food price crisis, Congress passed a farm bill that continued the long-standing practice of requiring that food aid be purchased in the United States and that 75 percent of it be delivered by U.S.-flagged ships. Read More… 2 Comments »March 2, 2009Cash (or Food?) for Thought: The Debate on Cash versus Food Isn’t Over (Yet)Posted by Jenny Aker in Food Crisis, Migration and Labor Mobility Tags: Food CrisisThis is a joint posting with Cindy Prieto 2 Comments »November 3, 2008Food Aid, With a TwistPosted by Jenny Aker in Food Aid, Food Crisis, Global Development, Migration and Labor Mobility Tags: Food Aid, Food CrisisThis is a joint posting with Rebecca Schutte 3 Comments »September 17, 2008What Happened to Japan’s Rice Pledge?Posted by Tom Slayton in Food Aid, Food Crisis, Global Development, Migration and Labor Mobility Tags: Food Aid, Food CrisisEarlier this year, with the food crisis in the daily headlines, the world’s leaders made promises — first in Rome at an FAO gathering in June and then at the G-8 summit in Japan the following month — to make a concerted effort to provide relief for the world’s poor. Among the pledges was that of Prime Minister Fukuda that Japan was prepared “to release in the near future over 300,000 tons.” With the government holding 1.3 million tons of imported rice, my colleagues and I wrote that “it is time for Japan to quit stalling and show some real leadership by releasing its unwanted rice stocks.” Comment »August 8, 2008Environmental Protection Agency Denies Request to Reduce Biofuels MandatePosted by Kimberly Ann Elliott in Food Crisis, Migration and Labor Mobility Tags: Food CrisisDespite showing leadership in opposing a pork-laden farm bill, the administration failed to do so yesterday. EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson denied Texas Governor Rick Perry’s request to cut in half the government-mandated level for ethanol in gasoline to help reduce soaring corn prices. While debate continues over the exact contribution of biofuels to the recent global food price hikes, corn-based ethanol has clearly driven up the price of corn and Governor Perry is particularly concerned about the effect of rising feed prices on the state’s large livestock industry. 2 Comments »July 8, 2008Albright and Podesta Call for Rich Country Action on Food Crisis, Including Release of Japanese Rice StockpilePosted by Lawrence MacDonald in Agriculture, Food & Agriculture, Food Crisis, G8, Migration and Labor Mobility, News, Rural Development, Trade Tags: Agriculture, Food Crisis, G8, Rural DevelopmentFormer US secretary of state Madeleine Albright and John Podesta, former chief of staff to President Clinton and CEO of the Center for American Progress, have urged rich world leaders assembled for the G8 summit in Japan to take action on the global food crisis, including rapid release of Japanese rice stockpiles imported mostly from the US. In an Op-Ed in today’s Boston Globe they write:
Comment »July 2, 2008President Sarkozy’s Compassion for the Poor and HungryPosted by Kimberly Ann Elliott in Agriculture, Food & Agriculture, Food Crisis, Globalization, Migration and Labor Mobility, News, Rural Development, Trade, World Trade Organization Tags: Food Crisis, Rural Development, World Trade OrganizationA report in the Financial Times by John Thornhill leads with a remarkable quote from French President Nicolas Sarkozy warning the EU that he would block a proposed World Trade Organization (WTO) agreement on agriculture that would reduce European production incentives: Comment »June 20, 2008Japan Should Release Surplus Rice ahead of G8Posted by Tom Slayton in Food & Agriculture Tags: Food Aid, Food Crisis, Japan, Rice CrisisThis posting is joint with Peter Timmer and Vijaya Ramachandran Comment »May 30, 2008New GAO Report is Food for Thought — And ActionPosted by Rachel Nugent in Africa, Evaluation, Food Aid, Food Crisis, Migration and Labor Mobility, Regions, United Nations Tags: Food Crisis, GAO, Sub-Saharan Africa, World HungerA new GAO Report on international food security (International Food Security: Insufficient Efforts by Host Governments and Donors Threaten Progress to Halve Hunger in Sub-Saharan Africa by 2015) gets it almost completely right when it points to the feeble, self-defeating, and confused U.S. policies on world hunger. The report diplomatically states: Comment »May 19, 2008Kudos to Tokyo and Washington on Rice Sales — Et Tu, Thailand and India?Posted by Peter Timmer in Agriculture, Food & Agriculture, Food Crisis, Migration and Labor Mobility, News, Trade, World Trade Organization Tags: Agriculture, Food Crisis, World Trade OrganizationThis post is joint with Tom Slayton, a rice trade expert and former editor of The Rice Trader 4 Comments »May 15, 2008Rice Prices Fall After Congressional Hearings But Crisis Not Over YetPosted by Peter Timmer in Agriculture, Aid Effectiveness, Food & Agriculture, Food Aid, Food Crisis, Global Health, Migration and Labor Mobility, Rural Development Tags: Food Aid, Food Crisis, Rural DevelopmentThis post is joint with Tom Slayton, a rice trade expert and former editor of The Rice Trader Comment »May 15, 2008Democrats and the Farm Bill: So much for Changing How Washington OperatesPosted by Kimberly Ann Elliott in Agriculture, Food & Agriculture, Food Aid, Food Crisis, Migration and Labor Mobility Tags: Food Aid, Food Crisis“Asked how she could justify paying so much money to wealthy farmers when food prices are rising and Democrats are calling for change in Washington, [House Speaker Nancy] Pelosi listed the bill’s nutrition and conservation spending. “I justify it by saying this is the best farm bill I’ve ever voted on.” – San Francisco Chronicle, May 15, 2008, p. 1. In fact, the article on the front page of Speaker Pelosi’s hometown newspaper highlights the many reasons that the farm bill passed by the House of Representatives is not a “very big step in the right direction,” as Pelosi also claimed. Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN) agreed that the farm bill “contains many worthwhile polices, including valuable investments in conservation and nutrition programs,” but he came down on the other side and was one of only 15 senators voting against the bill today. More than 300 House members voted in favor of the bill yesterday, enough to easily override President Bush’s expected—and well-deserved—veto. Reform champions Ron Kind (D-WI), Earl Blumenauer (D-WA) and 13 other brave souls in the majority also deserve kudos for bucking their leadership on this issue. Comment »May 6, 2008Ethanol Opposition Makes for Strange BedfellowsPosted by Lawrence MacDonald in Agriculture, Food & Agriculture, Food Crisis, Migration and Labor Mobility, News, Rural Development Tags: Food Crisis, Rural DevelopmentSam Loewenberg at Politico has an interesting story that describes the odd coalition that has emerged in opposition to ethanol subsidies — development and humanitarian NGOs, the livestock and food processing industries, and big oil. As Sam reports:
2 Comments »May 5, 2008Peter Timmer Peels Back the Layers of Complexity in Global Food Crisis in University of Illinois Radio InterviewPosted by Lawrence MacDonald in Climate Change, Environment, Food Crisis, Global Warming, Human Rights, Migration and Labor Mobility Tags: Food Crisis, Human RightsStill puzzled and concerned about the global food price crisis after reading Arvind Subramanian’s smart Q&A? CGD non-resident fellow Peter Timmer peels back the layers of complexity in a thoughtful online audio interview on WILL AM 580, the broadcasting service of the University of Illinois. Timmer, who estimated in an April 21 CGD Q&A that 10 million people could die prematurely as a result of the crisis, argues that the sharp spike in prices in the last six to eight months has a substantial speculative element. But he also warns that current yields are close to the technological frontier. “We are paying the price of two or three decades of neglect of agricultural research,” he says, adding that biofuel subsidies are a big part of the problem. 2 Comments »May 1, 2008President Bush Can and Should Do More to Address the Food Crisis: Let Japan Sell Its Rice ReservesPosted by Peter Timmer in Food Aid, Food Crisis, Global Development, Migration and Labor Mobility Tags: Agriculture, Food Aid, Food CrisisThis posting is joint with Vijaya Ramachandran Today, President Bush called on Congress to provide another $770 million in food aid, in addition to the $200 million already allocated through the Department of Agriculture,in order "to keep our existing food aid programs robust." There is no doubt that these additional funds are much needed to purchase and distribute food to those who are suffering greatly from the current spike in food prices. But the U.S. can and should do more. Specifically, the U.S. must allow Japan to sell, at full cost on Japanese books, the 1.5 Comment »April 28, 2008How NOT to Fix the Global Food Crisis — France Says Poor Countries Should Provide EU-Style Farm Subsidies, while U.S. Farm Bill Puts Vested Interests FirstPosted by Kimberly Ann Elliott in Agriculture, Aid Effectiveness, Food & Agriculture, Food Aid, Food Crisis, Global Health, Human Rights, Migration and Labor Mobility, News, Trade Tags: Food Aid, Food Crisis, Human RightsAnd now for a really bad idea: according to the Financial Times Michel Barnier, France’s farm minister, told a food crisis summit in Berne that Africa and Latin America should adopt their own versions of Europe’s Common Agricultural Policy — massive trade-distorting subsidies — as a response to rising demand for food. 3 Comments »April 21, 2008Trade Policy for a New Deal on HungerPosted by Nancy Birdsall in Agriculture, Climate Change, Environment, Food & Agriculture, Food Aid, Food Crisis, Global Warming, Migration and Labor Mobility, News, Trade, World Bank Tags: Food Aid, Food Crisis, World BankThis is a joint post with Arvind Subramanian 1 Comment »April 11, 2008The Global Food Crisis: Time for Action, Not PanicPosted by Kimberly Ann Elliott in Climate Change, Environment, Food Aid, Food Crisis, Global Warming, Migration and Labor Mobility, News, United Nations, World Bank Tags: Agriculture, Food Aid, Food Crisis, UN, World BankThe New York Times yesterday (and Paul Krugman earlier in the week) called on rich countries to “step up to the plate” in confronting the food crisis in developing countries — in the short run by increasing their donations of food aid. and in the medium run by getting rid of economically inefficient, inequitable, and environmentally unsound subsidies for biofuels, especially corn-based ethanol. Comment » |
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