Sen. Lugar Op-Ed: Energy & Food Security Both Necesssary

5/22/2008
Pro Farmer Editors

Following is an op-ed from U.S. Sen. Dick Lugar (R-IN).
Food and ethanol: we need both

By Richard G. Lugar

As Hoosiers, we can appreciate the devastating impact of the current global food crisis. The Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that people in nearly 40 countries are facing food shortages and social unrest because of soaring food costs and decreased availability of staples like rice, wheat, corn and soybeans.

Many of the recent advances made in alleviating global poverty could be wiped out by the double blow of high food and high energy costs.

Our farmers know that the current situation was produced by a complex web of factors, including increased demand for food from growing and wealthier populations in emerging economies, soaring energy prices, droughts in key food exporting countries, panic buying, cutoffs in grain exports by major suppliers, market-distorting subsidies, a tumbling U.S. dollar, and aggressive commodities speculation.

Read the full op-ed