Agriculture and Food Security

un marché de rue vide dans le district de West Point de Monrovia, 20 août 2014.

* Les pénuries de main-d'œuvre devraient atteindre la saison de récolte principale

* Prix de manioc à Monrovia ont augmenté de 150 pct en août

* La FAO a besoin de $ 20 millions pour le plan d'intervention

FAO.org - af.reuters.com-

ROME/DAKAR, le 2 septembre (Reuters) - Ebola pire le monde épidémie a mis en danger des récoltes et des prix des denrées alimentaires envoyés flambée en Afrique de l'Ouest, la nourriture de l'ONU et l'Agriculture (FAO) a déclaré mardi, attention le problème s'intensifier dans les mois à venir.

par Isla Binnie et Emma Farge - 2 septembre 2014

La FAO a publié une alerte spéciale pour le Libéria, la Sierra Leone et Guinée, trois pays les plus touchés par l'épidémie, qui a tué au moins 1 550 personnes étant donné que le virus a été détecté dans les jungles distants de Guinée du sud-est en mars.

Restrictions sur les mouvements populaires et la création de zones de quarantaine pour contenir la propagation de la fièvre hémorragique ont conduit à des pénuries alimentaires achat, panique et des hausses de prix dans les pays mal préparés pour absorber les chocs.

Image: Rice grains.

earth-policy.org - August 19th, 2014

With grain providing much of the calories that sustain humanity, the status of the world grain harvest is a good indicator of the adequacy of the food supply.

More than 2 billion tons of grain are produced each year worldwide, nearly half of it in just three countries: China, the United States, and India.

Corn, wheat, and rice account for most of the world’s grain harvest.

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submitted by Marielle Dubbeling  

The Farmery, slated to open this fall in an as-yet-undisclosed location, will be an 8,000-square-foot market that will grow its own mushrooms, greens and fruits. Photograph: Amy Edwards/Farmery

As the 'buy local' movement grows, social entrepreneurs find novel ways to make agriculture an integral part of urban life

theguardian.com - by Sarah Shemkus - July 2, 2014

Many shoppers like the idea of buying local. After all, it can mean fresher and healthier foods, stronger local economies, direct contact with food producers and in some cases — but not always — lower carbon emissions.

But most of us have only a few options for participating in the local food movement: visiting the farmers market or signing up for a community supported agriculture (CSA) subscription. As the movement continues to grow and evolve, however, social entrepreneurs are experimenting with novel ways to make local agriculture an integral part of urban life.

This is Dr. Fred Davies, US Agency for International Development senior science advisor for the agency's bureau of food security and a Texas A&M AgriLife Regents Professor of Horticultural Sciences.  Texas A&M AgriLife Research photo by Kathleen Phillips

agrilife.org - by Kathleen Phillips - April 18, 2014

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The world is less than 40 years away from a food shortage that will have serious implications for people and governments, according to a top scientist at the U.S. Agency for International Development.

“For the first time in human history, food production will be limited on a global scale by the availability of land, water and energy,” said Dr. Fred Davies, senior science adviser for the agency’s bureau of food security. “Food issues could become as politically destabilizing by 2050 as energy issues are today.”

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Eurekalert - Food shortages could be most critical world issue by mid-century