Where's the food!?

Every night I have a bowl of rice for dinner. Almost every night for the past nineteen years I have had a bowl of rice for dinner. I take it for granted since I see it every night, but a few weeks ago after hearing a report on the radio about a rice shortage I was stunned. Countries in Asia that export rice like Vietnam, Thailand, and the Philippines barely have enough to support their own populations. People are hording rice and waiting to sell it when the demand is so high that they can set their own price. The Philippines’ Government is even sending teams of police to track down and bust people who hoard rice because it is so scarce. What surprised me even more was a report that Japan is having food shortages. A well developed nation that doesn’t have enough butter or corn for it population; a world superpower having a food shortage? Impossible- but it’s happening.

How does this world food shortage affect Americans? Right now the food shortage is hardly noticeable since most of us have food on our tables every night, but people are pointing fingers at the government; particularly at subsidies that the government gives to farmers. According to Justin Norrie’s “Japan's hunger becomes a dire warning for other nations” the Japanese are running short on certain food items. Since Japan relies on food exports on other nations, a drop in an exporter’s production could hurt the importers like the Japanese.

This is where subsidies come in. Since energy prices are so high the United States government is making a push to subsidize corn for ethanol- a component of biofuel. This investment in ethanol makes fuel cheaper but reduces the amount of farmers that produce food for eating. Farmers like these subsidies because they are getting more money out of the subsidies then growing wheat or food grade corn. More farmers are planting corn for ethanol instead of corn for the supermarket because they are making more money planning corn for ethanol. This affects the world because the United States exports food to other nations. If more farmers in the United States are planting crops for ethanol then what is happening to the amount of crops the United States is exporting? What is happening to countries that import food and products that rely on exporting countries?

I believe the market should dictate what should made or planted and that the government should do its best to stay out of the market. The food shortages that are occurring in Asia are good examples of how the Untied States government can affect other economies. So in the best interests of the human stomach government should stay out of the market.