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The Economics of Food and Hunger in Haiti

The Economics of Food and Hunger in Haiti. With food prices rising, Haiti's poorest can't afford even a daily plate of rice. Some take desperate measures to fill their bellies.

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The Economics of Food and Hunger in Haiti

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  1. The Economics of Food and Hunger in Haiti

  2. With food prices rising, Haiti's poorest can't afford even a daily plate of rice. Some take desperate measures to fill their bellies. Charlene, who is 16 with a 1-month-old son, has come to rely on a traditional Haitian remedy for hunger pangs: cookies made of dried yellow dirt from the country's central plateau. The cookies are made of dirt, vegetable shortening, and salt.

  3. Food prices around the world have spiked because of higher oil prices needed for fertilizer, irrigation and transportation. Prices for basic ingredients such as corn and wheat are also up sharply, and the increasing global demand for fuel is pressuring food markets. http://cleanergy.blogspot.com/

  4. The problem is particularly dire in the Caribbean, where island nations depend on imports and food prices are up 40 percent in places. The global price hikes, together with floods and crop damage from the 2007 hurricane season, prompted the U.N. Food and Agriculture Agency to declare states of emergency in Haiti and several other Caribbean countries. http://www.destination360.com/carribean/images/caribbean_map.gif

  5. At a market in a slum near the capital city, inflation hits residents hard. Two cups of rice now sell for 60 cents, up 10 cents just from December. The cookies sell for about 5 cents apiece, so they are a bargain compared to other food staples. About 80 percent of people in Haiti live on less than $2 a day and a tiny elite controls the economy.

  6. Marie Noel, 40, sells the cookies in a market to provide for her seven children. Her family also eats them. "I'm hoping one day I'll have enough food to eat, so I can stop eating these," she said. "I know it's not good for me.” Souce: Adapted from http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hcJ474CjaJGOUznskl4ZgTHdpxUAD8UFQVR00

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