U.N. Secretary General wants 50% rise in food production by 2030

The United Nations urged a summit on the global food crisis on Tuesday to help stop the spread of starvation threatening nearly 1 billion people by lowering trade barriers and removing export bans. "Nothing is more degrading than hunger, especially when man-made,"U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki Moon told world leaders who are likely to disagree over the link between biofuel production and high food prices.

The World Bank and aid agencies estimate soaring food prices could push as many as 100 million more people into hunger. About 850 milion are already hungry.

Ban estimated the "global price tag" to overcome the food crisis would be US$ 15 billion to US$ 20 billion a year and that food supply had to rise 50% by the year 2030 to meet climbing demand.

"Some countries have taken avtion by limiting exports or by imposing draft controls." he said. This "distorts markets and force prices even higher. I call on nations to resist such measures and to immediately release exports designated for huminatarian purposes."

The United Nations urged a summit on the global food crisis on Tuesday to help stop the spread of starvation threatening nearly 1 billion people by lowering trade barriers and removing export bans.Aid agencies say Japan and China have contributed to high rice prices, which have trigered riots as far away as Haiti, by controlling their stocks. Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda promised at the summit to release at least 300,000 tons of imported rice from storage to ease the crisis.

In his speech on Tuesday, Fukuda pledged to provide US$ 50 million to help developing contries, including those in Africa, increase agricultural food production, in addition to the US$ 100 million in aid already implemented this year.

Source: Japan times, June 4, 2008.