Will the world population be reduced drastically real soon as a result of high food prices?

Question

With food rioting going on though out the third world in the past week,and now even with poor nations stopping exports of food,how would effect the whole geopolitical scene.

Answer 1

Prices (presumably, in a free market) are only a reflection of increased demand or reduced supply.  Demand may be increased because of :

increased population

biofuels

population wanting more (meat instead of vegetables)

Supply could go down because of

reduced yield (honeybees dead)

desertification (climate change)

Answer 2

Wow, our world is really messed up... *sigh*

But probably not very soon, even though it may be coming... Aren't there charities and all of that drama to help with wars over food, food shortageg, exc? IDK but I don't think the population will drop drastically.

Answer 3

Food production its distribution ,and the prices

are for a large part orchestrated

Natural disasters will affect this but even these are included in calculations

Famines exist because they are allowed to happen .The world can produce enough to take care of them ,but does this ever happen.

In the past rising prices ,problems with food production or availability were preludes to wars

Hungry people are easier lead into war

And i think that War may be the more realistic reason of future population reductions ,

Famine of course has always been a part of that as well

apart from laboratory diseases and imposed sterility

Answer 4

Food prices are just going to go up as soon as peak oil is really felt.   Learn to plant a garden and skin a squirrel.

Answer 5

NO. People have been 'predicting' this for years and yet it has not happened. I am tired of the doom and gloom people just go away please.

Answer 6

The more I hear of things like this... the more I think that people want another Soviet Union which..... Killed 5 - 7.5 million people through mass famine in the Ukraine.

Also, population GROWTH is GOOD. Decline is BAD

Answer 7

yes we'll all starve.

Answer 8

Possibly. Especially in the third world countries.

But as prices go up in the U.S., people might start getting creative and start growing fruit and vegetable gardens in their suburban yards or using vegertable/fruit plants as houseplants.

Answer 9

I don't know about "drastically", but it will definitely take a hit. Haiti will probably go first as they've been struggling for a long time now.

We are already seeing problems in the Middle East, Africa, China, and India. Things can only get worse.

It shouldn't be too damaging to the U.S., U.K., EU, etc. (except for their wallets), but it could be devastating for the 3rd world countries.

some sources:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/...

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk...

http://www.blacklistednews.com/view.asp?...

Answer 10

I think we will eat less.

Answer 11

There are many people out there that cannot survive off of 8.25 an hour to feed their familes and much more. Soon there will be a famine (guessing) because of money situations because all of the prices are going up and soon no one will have the money to survive.

Answer 12

no...only in the  U.S....it is all linked to the U.S. dollar. A falling dollar means international goods (such as food and oil) are more expensive to us. For example, 1 euro can buy roughly twice as many bananas than 1 U.S. dollar. Now, if we can increase the value of the dollar, then goods will be cheaper. How? Pay off the national debt, stop printing so much money, and possibly back the dollar by SOMETHING. BTW, enjoy your tax refund financed from China...

Answer 13

The shortage of cheap fuel is a "man made" problem!   The U.S. has oil off our coasts!  We have oil in Alaska!  We have one of the largest sources of coal in the world!  

When our politicians get their heads out of their butt holes and allow oil drilling, gasification of coal and more refineries then transportation costs will be lower, fertilizer prices will be lower, corn will feed cows and kids and not cars and Muslim terrorists will lose a great source of income!

Left leaning, liberal politicians are the primary cause of  our energy shortage!   Our energy crisis is responsible for the value of our dollar falling - our energy crisis is man made!

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Man will never really have to starve as long as there is Soylent Green!