Approximately 100 million people are currently afflicted by the heightening food prices—even those that would have gotten by the crisis six months ago, are now in fear of starvation. The prices are now at their highest levels since 1945 and are causing turmoil throughout the world—mass starvation and rioting are causing global instability. As it stands, at least 25,000 people die per day from hunger, and as prices for basic foods, such as rice, wheat, and corn continue to increase, there seems to be no end in sight.
The increase is being caused by the a combination of factors; an increase in fuel prices, droughts in main food-producing countries, increasing dependency on China and India as food sources (among other things) and the use of some crops to produce biofuels.
As an effort to reach out to developing countries, Prime Minister Gordon Brown has pledged $60 million to the World Food Program in the form of emergency aid. The United States, which accounts for half of the world’s food donations, has promised $200 million. At the moment, $755 million is needed to meet the needs of the WFP. Despite the large amount of foreign aid needed, it remains to be seen how a sustainable difference can be made.
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