FAO releases guide for countries hit by high food prices
January 26, 2011 | 03:58 AM | Filed in: UN Food & Agriculture Organization
Apparently fearing that countries experiencing food shortages will imposing export restrictions as they did in 2008, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization today published a policy guide for countries hit by high food prices.
"The experience of the 2007-2008 food crisis shows that in some cases, hastily taken decisions by governments to mitigate the impact of the crisis, have actually contributed to or exacerbated the crisis and aggravated its impact on food insecurity," Richard China, director of FAO's Policy and Programme Development Support Division, said in a news release.
"Export restrictions, for example, applied by some surplus food-producing countries, exacerbated the global food market situation during the 2007/2008 crisis," China added.
"FAO strongly advises against such measures, as they often provoke more uncertainty and disruption on world markets and drive prices up further globally, while depressing prices domestically and hence curtailing incentives to produce more food."
FAO's Initiative on Soaring Food Prices
"The experience of the 2007-2008 food crisis shows that in some cases, hastily taken decisions by governments to mitigate the impact of the crisis, have actually contributed to or exacerbated the crisis and aggravated its impact on food insecurity," Richard China, director of FAO's Policy and Programme Development Support Division, said in a news release.
"Export restrictions, for example, applied by some surplus food-producing countries, exacerbated the global food market situation during the 2007/2008 crisis," China added.
"FAO strongly advises against such measures, as they often provoke more uncertainty and disruption on world markets and drive prices up further globally, while depressing prices domestically and hence curtailing incentives to produce more food."
FAO's Initiative on Soaring Food Prices
