Food for the hungry

If you haven't heard it on the news, there is a food shortage. Millions of people are going to starve to death because they can not get food. This isn't just in countries where one meal is served a day. This is in our western countries, like Australia and the United States too.

People have many different theories why there is such a massive food shortage. Most people are willing to label it as the cost of farmers growing bio-fuel instead of food for human consumption. But why would farmers chose bio-fuel crops over food crops?

Perhaps one of the reasons lies in copyright.

In traditional farming, a farmer buys seed, plants his crop, and then collects a portion of the crop's seeds for the next seasons planting. In today's farming, corporations own the copyright on the genetically modified (GM) food. This means that each season, a farmer must purchase more seeds or risk prosecution for using seeds that have the copyrighted DNA. Farmers have a higher overhead on these foods. It is cheaper for them to produce biofuel, thus, they can afford to continue farming.

In 2006 Monsanto, a corporation who makes GM foods, had a revenue of over $7 Billion USdollars. They got their revenue party by forcing those who use their products to continue to buy every season. Their tactics have forced hundred of farmers out of business around the globe. They continue to make no aplogies for they're actions. (Sadly, this is only one of their atrocities against their own customers, but if you'd like a full report, i suggest a read of their wikipedia entry.)

The next time you go to the store, check the label. By local food without the GM label. It will be better for you, and better for the person who grew that food.