Is global hunger due to a shortage of food production?
In this first decade of the 21st century, many farmers around the world are facing a great economic crisis of low commodity prices. These low prices are due to oversupply. The laws of supply and demand, in current economic theories, show that prices decrease when supply is greater than demand. Most of our current production systems are price driven, with the need for economies of scale to reduce the unit costs. The small, profit margins of this economic environment favor enterprises working on large volumes and as a result the family farm is declining. Many areas of the USA and Australia have fewer farmers now than 100 years ago and the small rural centres they support are disappearing off the map. Hundreds of thousands of farmers have had to leave their farms in Argentina due to higher production costs and lower commodity prices. Lehmann (2000) The sugar industry in Australia is on the verge of collapse for the same reason. Australian dairy farmers continue to leave the industry since
