The causes and consequences of the food crisis

The origins of the sharp rise in food prices towards a peak in mid-2008 are evaluated and analyzed. The food crisis has been felt not only among the poor people in both developing and developed countries but also increasingly among the working and middle-income people as the rising inflation eroded their hard-earned incomes, their savings, and their pensions. The protests and the spreading discontent forced the governments in many low-income countries to take drastic measures to restrict the rise in domestic food prices and ensure sufficient supply of basic agricultural products in order to protect their consumers. In many countries, the food crisis deteriorated into a recession that deepens their poverty and malnutrition. Threats to global security and the risk of widespread violent demonstrations that may shatter the stability of the regimes in many countries are evaluated.