Hunger Set to Become a Key Issue in Global Politics

Agriculture - A Critical Industry for the 21st Century

BERLIN, September 28, 2010 - The prices of wheat and other agricultural commodities have risen yet
again, following the already significant price increases of 2007 and 2008.
According to the Humboldt Forum for Food and Agriculture, these are the early
indicators of a latent food crisis, which will hit the world within the next
ten years.

"If no decisive action is taken, the prices of key food commodities are
likely to be 50 to 100 per cent higher by 2020 than they were at the turn of
the millennium. This would dramatically increase the level of hunger and
malnutrition, around the world," says Harald von Witzke, president of the
Humboldt Forum for Food and Agriculture, an international think tank,
headquartered in Berlin, Germany.

Over one billion humans are already malnourished. Every day, 16,000
children die as a result of malnutrition. Even a moderate increase in the
price of food would significantly worsen the nutritional status of the poor,
who typically have just $1.25 per day or less in purchasing power, with
approximately 75 percent of that dedicated to food. This serious situation is
set to worsen dramatically as our food needs look set to double in the first
half of the 21st century.

According to von Witzke, sustained high food prices would not only lead
to food riots, as they did in 2007 and 2008. They also have the potential to
significantly increase international migration away from food insecure
countries with agriculture becoming a key industry. "The world is running out
of time. Both the poor countries and international development assistance
have to take swift and decisive action. The neglect of agriculture must end."

Von Witzke's recommendations include investing in agricultural
infrastructure and education, and making mineral fertilizer, cropping
protection and modern seed varieties available to farmers in poor countries.

    Contact:

    Professor Harald von Witzke
    Humboldt Forum for Food and Agriculture
    hvwitzke@agrar.hu-berlin.de
    phone: +49-30-2093-6233
    mobile: +49-177-400-1187

Professor Harald von Witzke, Humboldt Forum for Food and Agriculture, hvwitzke at agrar.hu-berlin.de, phone: +49-30-2093-6233, mobile: +49-177-400-1187