I might be looking at this wrong. If I am please correct me.
The world food crisis isn't about the price of food at the farm gate or the price of food in general. It is that people are still having to live on less than 5 dollars, 2 dollars or 1 dollar per day.
Lets say that I live in North Central Alberta Canada. ( I do ) In 1978 wheat sold for about $2.75 a bushel. Gas about $.20 a litre, 160 acres of land sold for $25,000. My first Truck GMC Sierra $7,000.
Then 25 years later - 2003 My truck $37,000, gas $.70, 160 acres of land $100,000. What was wheat $3.25 a bushel.
Today the truck is $50,000 gas id $1.21 that same piece of land is closer to $150,000.
You all think that the farmer should be selling the grain at a loss so that you can have cheap bread.
Every thing else went up by a factor of 5 why shouldn't the price of grains. The issue shouldn't be that the prices have jumped so much in the last year or two, it should be why has the government kept the price artificially low for so long at the expense of the farmer.
The problem is not that farmers are getting a price that now reflects inflation for the last 30 years, but the poorer countries are struggling to keep up for what ever reason. That is where we should be focusing our attention.
Help them develop income, grow their own, and try to convince our government to help their government to be more accountable. While we try to make ours more accountable.
Just my opinion
Gary
Discloser statement - I do not farm, my family doesn't farm. I don't make enough at my day job that I could afford to pay for that lifestyle.
The world food crisis isn't about the price of food at the farm gate or the price of food in general. It is that people are still having to live on less than 5 dollars, 2 dollars or 1 dollar per day.
Lets say that I live in North Central Alberta Canada. ( I do ) In 1978 wheat sold for about $2.75 a bushel. Gas about $.20 a litre, 160 acres of land sold for $25,000. My first Truck GMC Sierra $7,000.
Then 25 years later - 2003 My truck $37,000, gas $.70, 160 acres of land $100,000. What was wheat $3.25 a bushel.
Today the truck is $50,000 gas id $1.21 that same piece of land is closer to $150,000.
You all think that the farmer should be selling the grain at a loss so that you can have cheap bread.
Every thing else went up by a factor of 5 why shouldn't the price of grains. The issue shouldn't be that the prices have jumped so much in the last year or two, it should be why has the government kept the price artificially low for so long at the expense of the farmer.
The problem is not that farmers are getting a price that now reflects inflation for the last 30 years, but the poorer countries are struggling to keep up for what ever reason. That is where we should be focusing our attention.
Help them develop income, grow their own, and try to convince our government to help their government to be more accountable. While we try to make ours more accountable.
Just my opinion
Gary
Discloser statement - I do not farm, my family doesn't farm. I don't make enough at my day job that I could afford to pay for that lifestyle.
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