Currently, there is a food shortage of massive proportions sweeping the globe. This food shortage will affect residents of poor and less-developed countries first, but the effects will trickle down to even the most highly developed countries quickly. The food shortage is not as much of a shortage due to decreased production as a shortage caused by price increases.

Residents of countries that consume a higher proportion of processed foods to unprocessed foods can weather the storm more easily than people whose diets consist mostly of unprocessed basics. That is because people consuming many processes foods can switch to buying basics, saving money and remaining able to pay for their food. Those whose diet consists of basics such as fresh fruits, vegetables and grains, have nowhere to go, except hungry.

This food shortage is the result of many different factors-including the aforementioned price increases. There are five main factors contributing to the global food shortage which is rapidly devolving into a global food crisis

Five Factors Contributing to the Global Food Crisis

1) Rising Fertilizer Costs

Farmers in the poorest nations cannot afford fertilizer for their crops. Their land is so depleted of nutrients that they cannot effectively raise food without fertilizer. Fertilizer prices are rising because synthetic fertilizer is produced using oil-based energy sources, the price of which is rising steadily and quickly.

2) Subsidies for Production of Bio-fuels

Biofuels are produced with the same ingredients of food. Agricultural subsidies spent toward biofuel production are monies not spent on food production and distribution. While not the only cause, biofuel subsidies are a concern because they take money away from food production subsidies and biofuel production still requires use of fertilizers, which are produced using energy from conventional fossil fuels.

3) Poor Distribution Systems

Donating food to developing countries is a double-edged sword. On one hand, it provides necessary nutrients to sometimes starving populations. On the other hand, free food delivered to hungry countries contributes to price collapses for local food producers, taking away the incentive to produce food locally.

4) Unchecked Population Growth

Population growth is a vicious cycle-especially in developing nations. Families need help farming crops, so they have more children, translating into more bodies to help-and more mouths to feed. Additionally, birth control measures are less available in developing countries, contributing to the fast population growth.

5) Drought

All over the world, drought in top-food producing regions is reducing food production and driving prices higher. Drought across major food producing regions of the United States, including the southeast, Midwest and western regions is increasing food prices. Drought in regions of the African continent and in Australia is making it impossible to grow food-because there is no water to buy and no money to buy it.

Other factors, including political relationships, are contributing to the global food emergency. The five listed above are the main factors, in large part because they are either factors out of control of humans (we can’t control the weather), or because they are due to lack of research into energy and alternative fuel sources.

By: Christopher A. Williams

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“Food Miles”, the distance our food travels between the farm that produced it and our table. Preliminary estimates in some areas suggest that less than 8.5% of our diet is produced on local farms. While fifteen years ago it was almost double. The environmental pressure that our food transportation produces is enormous. Food that has been locally produced and traveled less “food miles” not only is better for the environment but often tastes better too, Food has to be harvested in a much less mature state so it can “ripen” in transit while locally grown food can “ripen” on the plant. Fortunately people are becoming more aware of the source of their food.

The Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, Iowa State University, Ames Iowa reported in July 2003, that the weighted average source distance (WASD) for locally locally grown produce to reach institutional markets was 56 miles, while the conventional WASD for the produce to reach those same institutional points of sale was 1,494 miles, nearly 27 times further.

According to Statistics Canada’s, Food Consumption in Canada, imports of food as a percentage of net supply are going up. Between 1964 and 2001, imports of fruits (and fruit products) have gone from 67% to 97% of supply. Imports of vegetables (and vegetable products) have gone from 20% to 48% in the same time period. While dairy products, poultry, and eggs have remained relatively stable, imports of red meat have risen from 4.2% in 1964 to 24% in 2002

Critics tell us that this debate risks turning consumers off imported products from the developing world and fails to take into account the emissions produced by farmers who would fill the market gap.

We know the booming aviation market is also very good for farmers and consumers. The millions of tonnes of flowers, fruit and fish flown around the world every day is staggering. BUT, complex chemical reactions that occur when aviation fuel is burnt at high altitude make aircraft emissions nearly three times as damaging as the carbon dioxide to our environment over ground transport, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

The British Government has the right line of thinking because they would like to reduce the environmental and social costs of food transport by 20 per cent by 2012. The country’s supermarkets are considering labeling produce with “food miles” showing the distance goods have traveled. Some of the large retailers like the US Wal-Mart, has started favoring suppliers that aggressively cut greenhouse gas emissions.

The ideal would be to have a system of labeling that would enable us to compare a product’s carbon footprint just as we currently compare price or nutritional value.

Take a minute to think of how many shopping carts are passing through supermarket checkouts each and every minute of every day in your country. How much precious fossil fuel is being burned up and added to the critical state of our atmosphere every single day to get this food to the shopping carts. Buying locally grown food, or taking the responsibility of growing some of your own food is no longer just a lifestyle option, it’s becoming a necessity for life itself. We all need to do our part if our children and grandchildren are going to have a safe place to live.

By: Carm Paynter

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You would think that the UK and USA does not produce any food, if this is the case then where has the billions of pounds gone that our two governments pay in farmers subsidies?

By buying food from abroad, developing countries get to market their produce world-wide and we get out of season food all year round. Everyones happy except the environment. Food transportation across the globe is making a significant contribution to climate change. Just look at the following examples:

Food in the UK travels 65% further than it did two decades ago

Heinz ketchup eaten in California is made with California-grown tomatoes shipped to Canada for processing and returned in bottles

In one year, the port of New York City exported $431,000 of Californian almonds to Italy, and imported $397,000 of Italian almonds to the US

Examples are from http://www.newint.org

What is local food and how can it help?

For many, local food is interpreted as unprocessed food, to be transformed by the consumer or a local shop rather than by the food industry. The food originates from as close to home as possible such as on a regional or national level. As such, local food reduces or eliminates the costs of transport, processing, packaging, and advertising. The go local food movement is currently flourishing with over 15% of people buying food locally and this number continues to rise as the number of farmers markets and local vegetable box schemes increases.

The benefit of locally grown fresh food is that it can be consumed almost immediately after production leading to an increase in food quality and taste as it may be sold fresher and usually riper. Also, the need for chemical preservatives to artificially extend the shelf-life can be reduced or eliminated.

Buying local food does not necessarily mean giving up all food coming from distant countries, but rather favoring local foods when available. Why buy apples from South Africa when you can buy British apples? But often buying food produced abroad can be cheaper (yes, cheaper) than locally produced food due to the subsidies the farmers receive and economies of scale from these large plantations.

It is also argued that national borders should preferably not be used to define what is local and instead measurements made in miles. The growth of Sat Nav systems maybe able to help in calculating the exact number of food miles that food has undertaken. For people living in, say, the south of England, food produced in northern France is more local than food produced in Scotland as it is closer. The local food movement in the European Union has been furhter complicated and hindered by EU rules requiring items produced in the EU, including food, to be marked as products of the EU, rather than as products of any particular country. The instinct of customers to buy nationally produced food in the name of patriotism was deemed to be a barrier to free trade and anti EU.

Studies need to be undertaken so that people can have faith and knowledge that the food that they are buying is actually reducing their carbon footprint on the earth. For example, we need to assess whether it is likely to be more environmentally friendly for tomatoes to be grown in the hot climate of Spain and transported to the UK than for the same tomatoes to be grown in greenhouses in the UK requiring huge amounts of electricity to light and heat them.

By: Davinos Greeno

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To understand how Aloeride® can help with food allergies, it’s important first to understand what an allergy is. In its simplest terms, an allergy is an atypical reaction to a substance, such as a food, that is not harmful to most people. That would be called an allergen. The immune system reacts to this allergen and decides it is harmful, then sets about fighting it, which causes what we know as an allergic reaction.

Food allergies are not the only type of allergies, of course, but allergies to common foods are extremely common, and can interfere with daily functioning in a way other allergies may not. Any child who’s ever been unable to eat in the school cafeteria because of a peanut allergy can attest to this.

Aloe vera has been used for medicinal purposes for tens of centuries, and its healing properties are well known in many cultures. In western societies, we often limit the use of aloe vera to gels and ointments for treating burns and scrapes. This is unfortunate, because the healing powers of aloe vera cannot be underestimated. Yes, aloe vera is helpful for burns and scrapes. But supplementing with an oral aloe vera capsule like pure and easy to take Aloeride® can increase health in many more ways, including reducing allergy symptoms.

Aloe vera is helpful in fighting food allergies because it works to strengthen the immune system. Aloeride® helps repair and maintain the health of the digestive tract. When your digestive tract is not in top condition, it can “leak” toxins, microbes and miniscule food particles into the blood stream. This overloads the immune system and liver, because they go to work fighting these toxins. A compromised immune system will often attack “allergens” that would not normally cause a reaction, and this is where many common food allergies come from.

When you take an oral aloe vera supplement like Aloeride®, you not only help decrease your incidence of food allergies, but also increase your overall health. Aloe vera is extremely useful in helping to strengthen your immune system, improve healing, and help you to feel healthier and more generally well, all the time.

When you feel fit and healthy, you will find that you are better able to do things that improve your overall health, and that in turn will continue improving your health. Many people with food allergies not only have other allergies, but also have other health problems or a general feelings of not being quite well most of the time. By using an aloe vera supplement, you can start down the path of health and wellness.

By: Chaz Milles

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Today’s world is facing the dilemma of food shortage. Population growth, alternate use of edibles, the skirmishes between the food program workers and the hungry warring factions, climate changes due to pollution, shortage of supply and above all the energy crises are the issues that are not only difficult to solve but also reversely affect each other. If one issue is resolved the other is catalyzed by this redemption. If we try control the pollution by using the corn and other edibles the ozone layer is saved but the humanity is harmed due to shortage of food. The water scarcity and energy supply are two major factors that are behind the price hike. If enough water is attained from the underground water resources the already falling water table goes more into abyss. The food issue is so perplexed that a concerted action is needed to over come the food shortage and food supply.

There are two billion people in the world who are not able to get enough food that can mitigate their hunger. World Food Program estimates that 850m people all over the world are already famished. The reasons behind this malnutrition are scarcity of food items and high food prices. The economists all over the world are warning persistently to the governments and donor agencies alike to take some urgent steps to avert these crises. Many of them are of the view that the crisis could be as serious as climate change and may hit sooner than climate disasters. According to the facts and figures collected by the world food program the food reserved for period of predicament is now enough only for 50 days.

The world population indicators show that present population of the world that consists of more than 6.5 billion people would touch the figure of nine billion by 2050. On the other hand there is no other earth or piece of land that could be the source of commodities like food and water for this extra population. This earth is the only place to live and get food from it. This population explosion is exerting huge pressure on food supplies and producing food shortage.

Ultimate effects of poverty alleviation are of a great concern for the economists of the future. The uplifted standard of the people of the most populated countries like India and China would pull them out of poverty but put them in the hole of shortage of food.

The low rainfall and the low yield are already affecting the economy of the world.160 million people depend on the 15% of the global food articles that are grown with underground sources of water and these resources are reducing rapidly. The water table in China and India is falling disastrously.
The river waters are also drying and making the bad situation worse.

There is a conglomerate of the causes behind this food scarcity.

If we root out one cause it gives rise to another one. We know that energy is the driving force of life. Life is running with energy. All the crops need some kind of supplement in the shape of fertilizers or pesticides. These things need a lot of energy for their synthesis. If proper quantity of energy is not available the needs of the crops could not be fulfilled and that gives rise to the shortage of yield and high price. People cannot buy the enough food and starve.

The use of food crops for producing the biofuel is becoming the main cause of price hike. The biofuel are atmosphere friendly but hazardous for the people as far as the food supply is concerned. American have set target of 35bn gallons of biofuel by 2017 to decrease dependency on oil imports. 800 million vehicle owners of the world and the two billion starved people are competing for the food crops for their respective use.

The unusual weathers due to pollution are badly affecting the flora and fauna of our earth. The water that was supplied by the rains is not available and drought is deserting the fertile lands. The only way to avert climate disasters is the use of biofuels but in this way people would not be able to get eatables. The maize that was used as fodder for the animals or as a food articles will be used for preparing the biofuel.

Policies of the states are the also one cause of these food crises. The capitalist governments often waste their products but do not distribute it among the poor just for maintaining the price level. The world economic forum devises policies to exacerbate the food crises but without any solid results.The world social forum demands the free food supply for all the people that are also impossible. The need of the hour is the median path that should not harm both the people and the industrialists.

There is no simple solution to this problem. The scientists should double the efforts to tackle this problem on emergency basis. The world can be saved by the sagacious application of all the methods of food and energy production. The people of the future could be feed only if the population and pollution are controlled. The water resources are saved and alternate sources of energy are discovered that are environment and people friendly. Fair and uniform economic policies all over the world can help humanity in averting the looming food crises. Above all a soft corner for the humanity will help us a lot to save our earth and its inhabitants from disaster.

By: Akram Saqib

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What New Testament people ate

Jesus called Himself the Bread of Life (John 6:48). In Matthew 4:4, He says, “Man shall not live by bread alone.” In context, He was being tempted by the devil to turn stones into bread to alleviate His hunger. Bread appears in many New Testament Scriptures. Since the importance of bread for physical sustenance had long been established, He was using bread as an analogy for the vital importance of obedience to God.

The diet of New Testament peoples must not have been much different from that of Old Testament peoples. In addition to fruits, vegetables, and herbs, unlimited seafood was available from the Sea of Galilee; seven of Jesus’ disciples were fishermen. Fish could be eaten boiled, sun-dried, pickled, or salted.

As in Old Testament times, mammals usually were slaughtered only for special occasions. In the Luke chapter 15 story of the Prodigal Son, the fatted calf was killed and prepared for the feast in celebration of the son’s return. (The emphasis here is that the Prodigal Son’s return was such a big occasion that it warranted the slaughter of a calf.) One reason that large mammals were slaughtered only for special occasions is that, in the absence of refrigeration, leftovers were not an option; therefore, a large group of people was required to consume the animal.

Jesus, like all Jews, followed a ritual for the Passover meal. The lamb would be slaughtered and grilled according to special rules; at least ten people would be required to consume it, and it had to be eaten before midnight. (Again, there was no refrigeration.)

To the present, His people have taken bread and wine together in remembrance of Him.

Dominion over the animals…what exactly does this mean?

If you have read my “Companion Animals” article, you will have already thought about the ambiguity of man’s “dominion over animals.”

The same verse (Genesis 1:26) that gives man dominion over the animals also tells us that God made man in His image. Undoubtedly, we are to conclude that people are to be considered higher than animals. But are we simply to care for them, as if they were babies or elderly humans? Or do we do with them however we please?

It is worth noting that both animals and humans breathe (respire) and plants do not. Respiration has the same root (“spir”) as “spirit.” So, while animals do not have an eternal soul, as humans do, they do have a spirit. That alone elevates them above plants and all other members of creation, except humans.

In giving us dominion over animals, perhaps God meant to warn us not to worship animals, as some pagans had done. Dominion seems to imply a middle ground between worship and wanton use.

Man began to eat meat after the Flood, when the earth was a wasteland and Noah and his family had nothing else to eat until they could establish their crops, and wild plants flourished again. At the time of creation, God had said, “I have given every green herb for food” (Genesis 1:30). After the flood, circumstances changed. God now said, “Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you. I have given you all things, even as the green herbs” (Genesis 9:3). For the first time, humans had the option of including animals in their diet.

We do not know, however, if people were supposed to continue eating meat indefinitely, or if it was a temporary solution to the food shortage problem. Postdiluvian peoples have not lived such long lives as before. Perhaps regular meat eating should be viewed as a sacrifice that Noah’s generation had to make for the survival of the human species.

What does all this mean for 21st-century people?

Cancer, heart disease, and high blood pressure—not to mention obesity—are among the life-shortening diseases now connected to a diet too high in fat. Fat is not an inherently bad thing. Even if it were possible to avoid dietary fat, it would not be advisable. Fats are needed for the assimilation of fat-soluble vitamins such as A, D, E, and K. Fat is necessary for healthy skin and for nerve function. Leviticus 7:23, however, advises us not to eat animal fat. Remember that olive oil was used prodigiously by Biblical people, and is now known to improve health rather than deteriorate it as animal fats do.

While these fat-attributable ailments may not have been known by these names in Bible times, when Biblical people died, it was usually for a known reason, and the reason was usually advanced age or battle casualty. It would seem, then, that people did not often die of these diseases, which are now among the major causes of death.

When people eat only to satisfy their tastes and desires, God is not pleased. Excessive meat eating, like excessive partying, is equated with gluttony.

It could be argued that Biblical guidelines no longer apply. We have refrigeration, so food need not spoil. We have plumbing, so we can wash our food easily. And we have antibiotics and other modern medicines, so if we do get sick, we can be made well again.

Yet, the road that leads away from dependence on God always leads toward destruction. The reasons behind the rules still apply: God wants us to stay pure for Him. I Corinthians 6:19 says that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we need to obey even when we don’t know the reasons for the rules. The attitude that we don’t need His help because we have invented wonderful things for ourselves does not please Him. (Remember the Tower of Babel? Remember the Titanic?)

The very real consequences of overdependence on our own intelligence can be seen in the decreasing effectiveness of antibiotics because of overuse and misuse. We have had these wonder drugs for our use for only a few decades, and we are in very real danger of losing them through irresponsible breeding of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. A whole generation of people has deluded themselves into a false sense of security that because of antibiotics, we do not need to heed the old rules against, for example, casual sex. Now antibiotic-resistant sexually-transmitted diseases are rampant.

We really do reap what we sow.

By: Lisa J. Lehr

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We have recently seen the grocery store strikes in California and the attacks on the Industry for anti-trust. We have seen poor performing stocks in this sector for years now. Wal-Mart Super Stores are also making a huge dent in the industry forcing grocery stores to exit markets where they are located too close to Wal-Marts. Recently Winn-Dixie announced it would close 326 stores and cut 22,000 jobs as their CEO Peter Lynch said that the closings would reduce revenue from $10 billion to $7.5 billion next fiscal year.

Are these closings going to help the company as it exits poor performing markets or is the company and the industry in a downward sector rotation spiral? Winn-Dixie is cutting heavy in Florida before Hurricane Season and will close twelve stores a seven-County Bay area in Florida. These store closings are Webb Plaza in St. Petersburg; N.W. Plaza and Tampa Market Place in Tampa; Forest Lakes Plaza in Oldsmar; Valrico Square in Valrico; Ridge Plaza in New Port Richey; Northwood Plaza in Clearwater, Palmetto Market Place in Palmetto, Brandon Center in Brandon and one store in Wesley Chapel the company said. It will close 43 stores in the state in the state and keep the highly profitable ones.
Winn Dixie has a few stores in TN, VA, which it intends to exit completely now for distribution streamlining as well as close many stores in North and South Carolina where it has significant market share. Winn-Dixie is also taking out some of its distribution centers in Atlanta, Charlotte, and Greenville and downsizing the one in Montgomery.

This trend of streamlining operations seems to be happening more and more as some non-performing stores are being over taxed by costs of lawsuits, unions and of course the ever present Wal-Mart Super Centers. One question the consumer must be asking is where will I buy food if all these stores keep closing. That answer is Wal-Mart with their superior distribution system and non-union stores. Think on this

By: Lance Winslow

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I have been to several conferences and meetings this week where there has been a discussion on genetically modified (GM) foods. With the current food shortages and rising food prices there has been a focus on whether we in Europe in order to improve yields and efficiency should grow GM crops. Whenever I try to have a balanced discussion on GM foods, I find it almost impossible and because I am a food scientist people often ask me questions such as:

What is genetically modified food?

How do we know if we have eaten it, or meat from an animal that has eaten it?

Should food be labeled so that we can make the choice if we want to eat it or not?

Is it traceable in the supply chain? How is cross-contamination between GM and non GM prevented?

Who benefits most from the GM revolution?

What information should we trust? Who should we trust?

The GM debate is as much about fear, dread and trust i.e. perception as it is about science and risk probably more so. Consumers do not like being told what to eat they want to make an active choice when faced with these difficult questions. Tolstoy once said that “True science investigates and brings to human perception such truths and such knowledge as the people of a given time and society consider most important.” I believe he is right. So what do we as consumers consider is important with regard to food either individually or collectively – price, value, flavor, method of production?

By: Louise Manning

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On April 24th, 2007 Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance Inc. issued a voluntary recall on several of their pet food products after receiving a half dozen reports in the same day regarding animals falling ill after consuming the food. Melamine, the same chemical that contaminated wheat gluten in hundreds of foods that have been recalled over the last month, was detected in the rice protein samples.

Since then, importer and distributor Wilbur-Ellis has issued a complete recall of all rice protein that entered the country from manufacturers Binzhou Futian Biological Technology in China.

On April 2nd, when shipment was received by Wilbur-Ellis, most of the rice protein was bagged in the usual white bags except one pink bag that was clearly marked melamine. It was thought at that time that it was a limited incident and that all infected products were recalled. However, melamine has since been discovered in all of the rice protein in that shipment and the FDA is testing all eight shipments of rice protein that has entered the US since July 2006.

Newly recalled foods include:

ROYAL CANIN VETERINARY DIET(TM) (available only in veterinary clinics)

Dry Dog Food

* Canine Early Cardiac EC 22(TM)

* Canine Skin Support SS21(TM)

Dry Cat Food

* Feline Hypoallergenic HP23(TM)

ROYAL CANIN SENSIBLE CHOICE