In the January/February 2010 edition of Foreign Affairs, Carlisle Ford Runge and Carlisle Piehl Runge wrote an article titled “Against the Grain, “ which questions if the current global balance between food prices (high) and food supply (low) invites a return of the theories of Thomas Malthus, who posited that overwhelming human population growth would be held back by a decreasing availability of food.
The article points out how technological improvements have increased crop yields, especially in the developed world, by lowering prices for food. When this occurs, less of a priority is made to fund new research and development intended to increase crop yields, causing food availability to decrease over the long term.
The authors also write about the impact of policies that commit more food products to be converted into biofuels, and the effect this is expected to have on food prices. To combat further food price imbalances, they urge leaders to reconsider the economics of food production. To realize the benefits of advances in agriculture, the authors state that stable infrastructure and markets to deliver food must also be developed.
Posted by Michael Lucivero.
