Women Are Hardest Hit By Global Food Crisis

After she woke in the dark to sweep city streets, after she walked an hour to buy less than $2 worth of food, after she cooked for two hours in the searing noon heat, Fanta Lingani served her family's only meal of the day.

First she set out a bowl of corn mush, seasoned with tree leaves, dried fish and wood ashes, for the 11 smallest children, who tore into it with bare hands.

Then she set out a bowl for her husband. Then two bowls for a dozen older children. Then finally, after everyone else had finished, a bowl for herself. She always eats last.

A year ago, before food prices nearly doubled, Lingani would have had three meals a day of meat, rice and vegetables. Now two mouthfuls of bland mush would have to do her until tomorrow.

Rubbing her red-rimmed eyes, chewing lightly on a twig she picked off the ground, Lingani gave the last of her food to the children.

"I'm not hungry," she said.

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[ohiomark]

Here's a good start. STOP using food for fuel!!! Food is meant to fuel our bodies, not our cars and trucks.

There is plenty of oil in the world, let's drill for it and use it.

[leduck]

the last place left with a lot of potential oil to search for is...,
IRAQ
the U.S. is swiss cheese
the only place left to bother with is offshore
and that's only 18 billion barrels at most
so what?

drill here drill now might win votes
but from a geology stand point, it's moron

[Kman2]

Drill for it and use it? .....That's so 1990's.

Suggest you google the term "peak oil"

Let's find ALTERNATIVES to more drilling.

[ohiomark]

Alternatives are fine and encouraged, but they don't just appear with wave of a magic wand. Until they are viable and cost effective, we must drill to keep the price down and make food and all other goods and services that run on fuel affordable.

"Peak Oil" is a myth. There may not be much left in the Middle East, but there is plenty right here.

Live in reality, not wishful thinking.

[parrotslave]

Maybe if they had two kids instead of 25 they might be able to afford to feed their family.

[kingshmoopy]

I would guess that the majority of those children are not her children but children she cares for. We lived in Guinea and people would take in children who were not theirs because they had a moral obligation to do so.

As food costs increased this cultural practice suffered. One of the most heartbreaking sights I witnessed was a 15-year old boy who was sobbing, sitting with a small plastic bag of belongings at his feet. I asked neighbors what was happening and they told me he had been taken in by relatives when his parents had died, but his relatives could no longer afford to feed him so he would be forced to fend for himself on the streets. This is what begins to happen when people can no longer afford to buy a staple such as rice. Rising food costs are an inconvience for those of us who see their food bills rise and have to tighten up a bit, but it is a life changing catastrophe for those who live in poverty--in Africa and the US.

The next time you feel like blaming the victims have some compassion and remind yourself that you don't know their personal circumstances and you should not be judging them. Instead you should try to help in whatever way you can--go give a $25 loan on kiva dot org, or do something else like that, instead of judging people in whose shoes you have not walked.

[kardwell]

Sick f**ker

[leduck]

of those "25"
half never made it past 2 or 3 years old

how many kids do you have?

how much food does your family consume in a week? let alone energy
does your family throw away more left over food then her entire family eats in a week?
the third world uses far less energy and consumes far fewer resources per capita then we do in America

[parrotslave]

Did you read the article? It clearly stated there were 25 living children in the family that was profiled. With the high infant mortality rate in Burkina Faso it would be reasonable to assume that they may have produced even more children that did not survive, but that was not mentioned.

[orangepetal]

Ethanol/Biofuels have been linked directly to rising food prices. Sorros and Obama are supporters of this energy solution. Corn rose 70% last year. The peoples taxes are spent subsidising biofuel production and then again on providing charity food for the hungry ( at inflated prices ). Enough already!

[Kman2]

But do you still want corn/wheat/grapes/barley to be used to be made into the drinking type of ethanol? It's always a laugh listening to the anti-ethanol people rant against ethanol, except for the ethanol THEY use personally...then it's ok. "Pass me a Bud Light"

And yes, the fermentation process used for making the drinking type of ethanol is exactly the same as the fermenation process for driving type of ethanol. Some ethanol plants even use the exact same equipment.

[leduck]

corn based ethanol is a loser
It has a low EROIE
about 1:1
the amount of energy we get out of ethanol equals the amount of energy we put into making it
so what's the point in starving or inflating the cost of tortillas?

it doesn't benifit us or the hungry masses (only our farmers), so what's the point?

[orangepetal]

We know how much Obama cares for women. Zero. Put Hillary on the ballot in Denver for an honest vote !

[escobar]

Of course this is true.
Also the next time you think of bombing any country take a look at toddlers and young children.
THEY are the ones who bear the brunt of war no matter how, "Justified" the reasons are supposed to be..

[danoj]

End the mandate for 25% of the U.S. corn crop to go to ethanol would help ease the global food problem. Ethanol hasn't brought gas prices down whatsoever; last I heard here in the heart of Iowa is that ethanol costs five dollars per gallon to make. Takes more energy to make the stuff than it produces. Do away with the ethanol mandate food prices come down around the globe.

[kingcityguru]

That makes too much sense. Obama is therefore against it.