The Food+Politics connection isn't "news" to me--or to a lot of other regular people who have been paying attention. I wrote in January of 2007 on "Global warming, ethanol, and the tortilla crisis," noting the connections between our refusal to change our energy habits and growing food crises around the globe. In March last year there was a lot of concern about rising milk prices, something I posted in "Got Milk? Well, you'll pay more for it."
Now it appears people who should know more about such things, and care more about them, are starting to pay attention. People like the current federal administration. And people like the mainstream press corps. Here is part of the transcript from the May 22, 2008, U.S. Department of State daily press briefing with deputy spokesman Tom Casey:
QUESTION: Several countries have experienced food riots as a result of high prices. Can you just, in general, speak about whether or not the U.S. is concerned about the political implications for foreign governments of high food prices?
MR. CASEY: Well, I think our greatest concern is for the well-being of people who may be being squeezed out of their ability to feed themselves and their family because of high prices. And we are concerned about that. We've asked for and the Administration has asked for a substantial increase in our food assistance programs to be able to support those in need. You've seen us put additional money specifically into places like Haiti and some other countries where there have been serious problems caused by food shortages. And we're going to continue to do what we can to help alleviate those kinds of problems.
In terms of what the political implications of this are, look, I think there's any number of analysts out there that will be happy to talk to you about that issue. But from our perspective, the most important thing is dealing with the humanitarian needs of this. Obviously, every country in the world will have to determine its own agricultural policies and determine how any of these issues, along with things like rising energy prices, affect the kind of policies they adopt.
Yeah.
QUESTION: There's a theory that - sort of internationally that as the U.S. converts from foreign sources of energy and to ethanol that in this fight against terrorism that, in effect, that is having the effect of high prices of energy, of food internationally. What would you comment about that?
MR. CASEY: Well, first of all, I think you can talk to people at the Department of Energy and Agriculture, and the White House has commented on this, too. And that's something that, frankly, they're probably in a better position to address than I am. But I think if you look at the issues that are out there, we have some good news, and the good news comes with bad news. The good news is that in many parts of the world, their economies are developing and growing strongly and there's a growing demand worldwide. There's a growing population and there's a - and there are growing resources of people to be able to afford a variety of different commodities that they might not have in the past. And that places all kinds of demands on the world food market.
I'd also point out that rising energy costs do have a direct association with that since transportation of foods and foodstuffs is a large component of the ultimate price that consumers have to pay when something actually gets to their local market or to get it to their table. And the inputs that farmers have to use, whether that's fertilizer or gas products to run tractors or other equipment, inputs in terms of feeds and grains for livestock, are all the kinds of things that factor into the global price. Now, certainly, there is an impact that happens if people switch from one crop to another, and there's been a lot of reporting about some of the increased efforts to plant corn for use in production of ethanol here domestically. But I think if you look at the global agricultural market, the net impact of those relatively limited amounts of changes is pretty minor in terms of the overall picture.
QUESTION: Thanks. Just one last question.
MR. CASEY: You can try one more. I think you just about tapped me out on this one, but go ahead. (Laughter.)
QUESTION: In terms of the countries that are experiencing riots, do you think part of the reason to blame that is that perhaps on domestic policies of those countries or perhaps is it something in the international system which is led by the U.S.?
MR. CASEY: Well, look, there are differences in each situation and each country. There are some countries in which - are terribly poor and are suffering from a whole series of humanitarian problems that lead to food insecurity. Darfur would be a classic example of that. But there are other countries, certainly, where I'm sure individual national agricultural policies have played a role in where the price - where pricing structures are in that country and, you know, what kinds of access people may have to food or not. But again, individual countries have to be able to manage and respond to local circumstance in their own policies, and I don't want to try and, you know, provide advice to any individual country.
It is certainly important that the United States and that the international community, though, not just don't take note of the fact that there is a growing problem in terms of rising food costs, but that we all work together to see what we can do to deal not only with the short-term consequences of it, meaning the kinds of increased need for food aid that we've seen and that we're trying to respond to, but that we also look towards the long term of how to ensure that there is food security more broadly not only for our country but for the international system.
You can find the complete transcript here.
I want to point out that, in the last paragraph, Mr. Casey says that it is important that "we all work together to see what we can do to deal not only with the short-term consequences" but that "we also look towards the long term of how to ensure that there is food security more broadly not only for our country but for the international system." If this attitude could be embraced by the administration and the American people it would go a long way toward alleviating not only the current food crisis but any number of other challenges facing us all--from energy needs to global warming to social justice.
It bears repeating: Think Globally, Act Locally.
Yes, we need to do what we can on a neighborhood, city, state, regional, national level. But any decisions we make need to be made with regard to our small place in the world--we are not the center of things, only a part of the global citizenry.
If you haven't read Food+Politics before, look through the older posts for more on what you can do to help out. Even one little act--eating less meat, not driving one day a week, composting your garbage--is one step closer to making things better.
And it appears that the People with Power (government and media--and not necessarily in that order) are starting to give a damn as well.
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