The sharp increases in food prices that occurred in global and national markets over
the 2006 to 2008 period sharpened the awareness of policy-makers and agricultural
economic analysts of the stresses facing global food systems and the ecosystems
that support them. The rapid increases in prices of key food commodities such as
maize, wheat, rice and soybeans have mirrored the increases in prices of energy
products, and strengthened the perception that energy and agricultural markets
are becoming more closely linked (Schmidhuber, 2006). In the period 2002
to 2008, the international market prices of basic grain commodities more than
doubled, while the prices of wheat and rice tripled. Although this might present
different impacts on the consumer price indices in different countries – owing to
the different shares of these commodities in total consumption – it represents a
significant and sharp change in market conditions. While many see the reversal of
historically declining real prices of agricultural commodities as an opportunity for
agricultural producers in both developed and developing countries, others remain
concerned about the implications of high food prices and increased volatility
in food markets for the welfare and well-being of vulnerable populations, who
consist mostly of net consumers of these products and who largely reside in the
poorest regions of the developing world (Evans, 2008; FAO, 2008).