All God’s People Need Food World Food Crisis 2008 All God’s People Need Food

High Grain Prices Separate Haves and Have Nots Richest 20% in world consume 16 times as much food as the poorest 20% Industrialized Countries spend 10-20% on food Developing Countries spend 60-80% on food

Who are the have nots? FAO has documented we have 854 million who are undernourished at less than 1700 calories per day More than 1 billion people live on less than $1 per day – the extreme poor Another 1.5 billion people live on between one to two dollars per day

For I was hungry and you gave me food Jesus Calls Us to Follow Him - to bond with the hungry - to serve the hungry For I was hungry and you gave me food For I was thirsty and you gave me water

Looking beneath the $1 a day line Poor ($.75 cents – $1) 485 million people Medial poor ($.50 cents – $.75 cents) 323 million people Ultra poor (less than $.50 cents) 162 million people Source: Ahmed, et al. 2007.

Who are the Extreme Poor? 485 million people between $.75 cents & $1 Medial Poor 323 million people between $.50 cents & $.75 cents

Ultra Poor 162 million people less than $.50 cents Do we have strategies to find the hungry in their moment of need?

Where are they? Malnourished children- dark gray 40%+, light pink 30-39%, darker mauve 20-29%, yellow 10-19%, red less than 10%

Where are the poorest? The growing number of the poorest in SSA Living below US$.50/day (1990-2004) Source: Ahmed et al. 2007. 9

72% of Sub-Saharan Africans live on less than $2 a day 59% of Asians (excluding China) live on less than $2 a day Asian poverty declined in last 20 years while African poverty grew

World Prices as tracked by FAO

Surge in cereal and oil prices Commodity prices (US$/ton) New trend? Source: Data from FAO 2007 and IMF 2007.

GLOBAL FOOD PRICE RISES Wheat: 130% Soya: 87% Rice: 74% Corn: 31% Time: One Year to March 2008 Source: Bloomberg

Grain Market Forces Collide With Food Needs of Poor Production is insufficient. Stocks of wheat and rice are at 25 year low. Bio fuels are demanding more food stocks. Food riots threaten to create instability in 37 countries. Tariffs and subsidies in US and Europe depress local markets.

The poor need livelihoods. They need to grow their own food if at all possible. They may need rural extension and marketing services. They may need basic health care to maximize their opportunities. They may need literacy and new skills.

Pro-poor policy actions to adapt and mitigate food price problem Developed countries Eliminate agricultural trade barriers, expand / re-visit aid priorities for agriculture and rural services, including social protection

Pro Poor Policy Actions 2. Developing countries Increase investment in agriculture, rural infrastructure and market access for small farmers Expand social protection (rural and urban) for the poorest

Pro Poor Policy Actions 3. Science and Technology (CGIAR and NARS) Facilitate production response by agriculture science- and technology-based solutions (China, India, Africa) Joachim von Braun IFPRI, IFAD, FAO

Pro Poor Policy Actions 4. Support Agriculture programs for the poor Stand With Africa World Hunger Seek LWR and LWF programs that target the poorest of the poor

Sources cited FAO BBC Guardian World Bank Compiled by Pastor Chuck Fluegel East Central Wisconsin Synod of the ELCA