Corn Prices and the Global Food Economy - Paul Roberts

Complete video at: http://fora.tv/2008/06/18/Paul_Roberts_The_End_of_Food

Paul Roberts discusses how biofuels have driven corn prices up, in turn, causing a "ripple effect" throughout the global economy.

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More than 1.1 billion people worldwide are at risk of obesity-related illness, while roughly as many people are starving. Meanwhile, global food production faces dangers, including some chemicals, destructive farming techniques and contamination. Roberts takes a close look at food production, transport and consumption on a global scale, uncovering disturbing trends about the system we all entrust to handle our food. Will people take heed and work to improve the health of our food supply and distribution chain, before it is too late for millions of people around the world? - The Commonwealth Club of California

Paul Roberts is the author of The End of Oil, which was a 2005 New York Public Library Helen Bernstein Book Award finalist, and he is a regular contributor to Harper’s Magazine.

A long-time observer of both business and environmental issues, he is an expert on the complex interplay of economics, technology, and the natural world. He lives in Washington State.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• biofuels
• food
• economy
• economics
• subsidies
• farmers
• agriculture
• ethanol
• energy
• supply
• demand
• free
• trade
• crops
• foratv
• fora.tv
• fora
• tv

[Cubicleboy04]

Speeches like this should get more mainstream attention. This guy hits the nail on the head.

[dchris1990]

i love how informative videos get like...1640 views....and taylor swift gets 10000000. not that her videos arent good...but it wouldnt hurt people to stay informed a bit more..

[chrism7979]

Don't get me wrong human advancement is a turn on, but the people that are in the way to my agenda are people who only want money and to be higher in the pecking order. I can't find any closer way to be similar to our ancestor monkeys than to stomp on others for your own agenda. These people are the real problem, (by my standards) to human advancement.

[chrism7979]

The bottom line, (economically speaking) we need hard workers who create business and to be energy independent. As human monkeys we just want more and more. It doesn't matter how great the standard of living is, we just want more. It's more about a pecking order.

[chrism7979]

Why do you think these levels went up over the last 50 years, do you think it was someones magical wand?? It was caused by something. Support our economy but support organic farming and don't buy food that is created by giant corporations that wont budge. Buy local which is better and supports your local economy. Read your labels!

[chrism7979]

I agree, we need to support our economy but someone needs a kick in the ass to promote health too. Oh yeah, not to mention autism levels or all the other messed up disorders that are directly related to food.

[chrism7979]

Look at the rates of estrogen levels, antidepresents, suicides, low sperm counts... I think our country is worse off in many ways. When an animal is low weight we consider them normal, when a human is low weight we tell them to eat more shit..make sure you eat your two thousand callories a day and make sure you eat foods that Americans produce along with all the comapanies lobbying for shitty foods. Eat more, spend more, and support someone else.

[chrism7979]

When you make ten dollars a week you are going to spend a majority of your money on the staples of life. That doesn't mean that your quality of life is less. I know many fat unhappy Americans who spend their day eating basically chemicals the FDA considers "food".

[chrism7979]

I just ran across this speech. This guy is the one of the more intelligible people speak I've listened to in a long time.

[randy109]

If there were only a way to mix corporation's efficiency with ehtics and morals we could ALL be somewhat happier. Unfortunately a corporation's number one concern is profit and that is how it has to be. Gov't interference to try to put some "morals" into corporations only put bureaucratic burdens on them and increase prices as they cut efficiency. I don't have the answer but I have an opinion, but opinions are like @ssholes. Everybody has one and they ALL stink so I won't share my "opinion".