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The ShockThat
Staggers
World Food Production
The bridge to easy and abundan! food supplies-and prosperity- has been burned down. Many
nations are now forced to mortgage the earnings offuture generations to eat and survive today!
T
HE FOUNOAT IONS
of world
food production began to
shake and crumble seven
years ago.
It
started with the
1973 Arab oil embargo against
the supporters of the state of
Israel.
Subsequent decisions by Mid–
east oil producers quadrupled oil
prices. This staggered not just
energy-voracious industrial and
technological nations, but food–
short developing nations desper–
ately struggling to feed soaring
October / November 1980
by
Donald D. Schroeder
populations with limited econom–
ic and land resources.
Here is how.
Profound Shock
Soaring oil prices were at first
greeted with shock and disbelief
in the Third World- a term
applied to largely nonindustrial
but developing countries. There
was no two-t iered oil pricing sys–
tem- one for rich nations, one for
struggling developing nations-as
they hoped. Oil prices and subse-
quent energy-related costs soared
for all nations.
Imagine the impact on develop–
ing nations, already handicapped
with meager foreign exchange
reserves and limited development.
Between 1972 and 1974, the com–
bination of d rought, ferti lizer
shor tages and high energy costs
tripled the import prices of wheat,
rice, corn (maize) and soybeans.
Soaring food and fue! prices meant
less foreign exchange for other
much needed items- such as fer-
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