How we engineered the food crisis | Henry Miller | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk

In fact, the United States and Europe are diverting vast and increasing amounts of land and agricultural production into making ethanol. The United States is approaching the diversion of 40% of the corn harvest for fuel and the EU has a goal of 10% biofuel use by 2020. The implications are worrisome. On 9 February, the US department of agriculture reported that the ethanol industry's projected orders for 2011 rose 8.4%, to 13.01bn bushels, leaving the United States with about 675m bushels of corn left at the end of the year. That is the lowest surplus level since 1996.

Corn, Soybean Prices May Rise as Adverse Weather Menaces Crops - Bloomberg

Corn and soybeans may rise for the second straight week on speculation that wet, cold weather will delay planting and reduce yield prospects in the U.S., while rain threatens oilseeds ready for harvest in Brazil.

Japan: Let this be a call to act now | Green Left Weekly

The Japan disaster was not a result of climate change but if we don’t address the climate change crisis terrible catastrophes on this scale (or greater) will become more common in the future.