In the shortage of agri out put at home the country would have to opt for imports. The conditions in the international market are not suitable because the harsh weather has also impacted the agriculture of other countries as well. The prices are also increasing for the food items worldwide, so the number of poor.
A recent report by the FAO says that the double whammy of high food prices and the global economic slump pushed an additional 115 million people into poverty and hunger. By 2009, the total number of hungry people in the world had topped one billion.
According to new global hunger figures, that number has since dipped to 925 million people. However, with the recent sharp increase in food prices, that number may rise.
From July to September 2010, wheat prices had surged by 60 to 80 percent in response to drought-fuelled crops losses in Russia and a subsequent export ban by the Russian Federation. Rice and maize prices also rose during that period.
By December 2010, the FAO Food Price Index had topped its 2008 peak, with sugar, oils and fats increasing the most. In March 2011, the index dropped for the first time after eight months of continuous price spikes. The index dropped to an 11-month low in October 2011, but food prices still remain very volatile.
The cost of basic food staples remains high in many developing countries, making life difficult for the world’s poorest people who already spend between 60 and 80 percent of their meager income on food.
Following international commodities market trends the government of Pakistan will have to take measure to insulate the country from the impacts of global price hikes. Though the wheat production in the country for the current season was reasonable but hoarding may create artificial food crisis as was witness previous years. Sensible use of water may lessen the impacts of droughts in the coming days.