Understanding the Global Rice Crisis

What's behind the current food shortages: Is the increase in ethanol production to blame or is hoarding the problem?

Farmers harvest rice in Thailand, the world's biggest rice exporter. Unlike other exporters like India and Vietnam, Thailand has not announced curbs on rice sales. SAEED KHAN/AFP/Getty Images

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By Frederik Balfour

April 28, 2008 at 4:41 PM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

As world rice prices set new records daily, the World Bank has warned that the crisis could further impoverish 100 million people (BusinessWeek.com, 4/25/08). What's behind the current food crisis and what can the world do to dig itself out from the problems? Here are a few of the key issues to consider.

Has the increase in corn cultivation for producing ethanol in the U.S. and Europe affected the price of rice?