http://media.www.thelantern.com/media/storage/paper333/news/2008/05/21/Campus/Global.Food.Shortage.Hits.Home-3374273.shtml

Several Ohio State professors are researching the global food crisis.
“It’s a serious crisis right now,” said Ian Sheldon, professor of international trade. “The head of the World Food Programme is calling it a tsunami.”
There are about 1 billion people who live on less than $1 a day. “Riots in Haiti, Bangladesh, Mozambique and Egypt occurred in the last few months over the skyrocketing prices.”
“A variety of factors have caused the prices of wheat, corn, rice and other essential food products to double or triple in recent years. The crisis is inconveniencing many Americans and devastating poor people worldwide.”
Another reason for the crisis is “low agricultural production in the countries that need the food the most.”
“Crops such as corn, rice and wheat are not being produced enough, especially in developing countries,” said Rattan Lal, a professor of soil science and a researcher with the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center. “With prices and demand high, the poorest people in need of food are often out of luck,” he said.
“A big problem in developing countries is abuse of the farmland that hurts the soil,” said Lal. “ If carbon is restored to the soil, the quality of the soil will improve and positive change can begin.”
“This crisis can be solved,” Lal said. “The solution is to empower the poor farmer in Africa and Asia so that they can produce more, and the crop yield of those farmers can be quadrupled with proper management.”
Although the crisis is mostly affecting poor countries, Americans are being hit hard.
“It will affect all Americans,” said Carl Zulauf, professor of agricultural marketing and policy. “We’ve already seen higher food prices in the grocery stores, and we think we’re going to see higher meat prices down the road. Because of the significance of meat in the American diet, that will be a major event.”