Coffee Families Confront the International Food Crisis
While consumers in the United States fret over gas prices, a food crisis threatens millions around the world. Coffee Kids staff visited with families in the states of Chiapas and Oaxaca, Mexico and learned about the effects of the international food crisis and how they are confronting the problem.
According to women working with Coffee Kids partner organization FomCafé in Oaxaca, they have seen prices for basic products such as corn, oil and rice more than double since October of 2007. The price of many vegetables has increased 50% or more.
“Before 2008, families spent about 60% of their income on food, but today families are spending almost all of their income on food. Salaries have not risen, money being sent home is lower, and work is scarce in many rural communities,” said José Luis Zárate, international program director at Coffee Kids. Families in the United States spend about 10% of income on food.
Prices for common goods:
Cooking Oil (liter), which cost US$1 in October, is now US$2
Corn (kilogram), which cost US$0.28 in October, is now US$0.47
Rice (kilogram), which cost US$0.70 in October, is now US$2
Coffee Kids partners, the Association for Research and Training of Southern Mexico (ICSUR) in Chiapas and FomCafé in Oaxaca are working in rural coffee-growing communities to build capacity and reduce reliance on the annual coffee crop, which does not provide enough income for families. Many of their efforts are also helping families deal with the food crisis.
Women and men working with ICSUR in Chiapas are learning to raise and sell mushrooms and chickens to diversify their income and bolster family diets. Women working with FomCafé are learning about organic gardening, cultivating food for their families and selling the surplus locally.
“Many of the women commented that thanks to these projects they have access to fresh, organic foods for their families, something they couldn’t afford otherwise,” Zárate said. “The same is happening with the women working with ICSUR in Chiapas. Without these productive projects, it would be difficult to afford meat or eggs.”
While food security is the major issue families in Mexico are confronting, ICSUR and FomCafé also promote projects in health care, education and economic diversification.
Check out photos from our latest visit on our Flickr page.
According to women working with Coffee Kids partner organization FomCafé in Oaxaca, they have seen prices for basic products such as corn, oil and rice more than double since October of 2007. The price of many vegetables has increased 50% or more.
“Before 2008, families spent about 60% of their income on food, but today families are spending almost all of their income on food. Salaries have not risen, money being sent home is lower, and work is scarce in many rural communities,” said José Luis Zárate, international program director at Coffee Kids. Families in the United States spend about 10% of income on food.
Prices for common goods:
Cooking Oil (liter), which cost US$1 in October, is now US$2
Corn (kilogram), which cost US$0.28 in October, is now US$0.47
Rice (kilogram), which cost US$0.70 in October, is now US$2
Coffee Kids partners, the Association for Research and Training of Southern Mexico (ICSUR) in Chiapas and FomCafé in Oaxaca are working in rural coffee-growing communities to build capacity and reduce reliance on the annual coffee crop, which does not provide enough income for families. Many of their efforts are also helping families deal with the food crisis.Women and men working with ICSUR in Chiapas are learning to raise and sell mushrooms and chickens to diversify their income and bolster family diets. Women working with FomCafé are learning about organic gardening, cultivating food for their families and selling the surplus locally.
“Many of the women commented that thanks to these projects they have access to fresh, organic foods for their families, something they couldn’t afford otherwise,” Zárate said. “The same is happening with the women working with ICSUR in Chiapas. Without these productive projects, it would be difficult to afford meat or eggs.”
While food security is the major issue families in Mexico are confronting, ICSUR and FomCafé also promote projects in health care, education and economic diversification.
Check out photos from our latest visit on our Flickr page.
Comment
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Comment by Alun Evans on July 12, 2008 at 6:21pm
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Indeed this is a problem that is impacting on growing communities in Indonesia as well. Since late 2007 car/truck fuel has gone up 40%- cooking fuels (Kerosine) around 38%. The cost of rudimental building supplies (cement, steel, tiles, roofing) in some cases 100%. Gas, 100%. Food increases have from 18-60% (depending on the food product). Transport costs 30%. Fortunatley many of the growing communities in Indonesia do have diversified cropping and agri systems- for instance the growers in North Sulawesi also produce carrots, potatoes and cabbages. Much of this produce is sent out, but a good ammunt remains available in the local markets communities
In many cases these remote communities bring in many more goods than they send out (value wise). However some of the other growing regions- especially Central and Western Papua, are really struggling with food supply due to the huge increases in transport and food cossts and remoteness of the areas that grow coffee.
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