World Wheat Crop A Record In 2008

World wheat output jumped 12.4 per cent in 2008 to 686 million tonnes, driving global cereals output to record highs, the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization said Feb. 12, raising its earlier estimates. But smaller planted areas and bad weather are likely to trigger a fall in output of wheat and other cereals in

UN warns food output could fall, prices rise

“While arguments for supporting small farms are sometimes dismissed as based on a romantic attachment of peasant agriculture, the evidence shows that with the right policy framework, small farming can be a viable route out of poverty.” – CHATHAM HOUSE REPORT A recent drop in food prices could discourage farmers from sowing crops and cut


Nearly a billion hungry, food prices high

High food prices helped push another 40 million people into hunger this year, the U. N.’s food agency said Dec. 9, raising the number of undernourished people in the world to 963 million. A report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) that said fewer and fewer people can afford decent meals, especially in Asia

Atomic agency urges crop mutations to ease hunger

The UN atomic agency called Dec. 2 for greater trust and investment in using radiation to bolster crops against climate change and disease as a way to save millions from hunger. The technique has been around since the 1920s and proven effective but its spread has been limited by phobias over the words “radiation” and


UN calls food summit in 2009, hopes for fair trade

The world should hold a food summit in the first half of next year to seek fairer trade and help farmers in poor countries make a decent living, the head of the United Nations food agency said Nov. 19. Jacques Diouf, head of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), said the summit would seek to