Soaring food prices: response to the crisis
Soaring food grain prices in recent months have caused serious concern around the world. In Asia the estimated 1.2 billion poor people who spend on average 60% of their income on food have been hit hard. Food price inflation severely stresses the most vulnerable groups. High and rising food prices are threatening to reverse the gains in poverty reduction in the Asia and Pacific region, undermining the global fight against poverty. If high food prices persist, the Millennium Development Goal of halving poverty by 2015 could be jeopardized. This paper explains why food prices are rising and how ADB is responding to this crisis.