Food security under pressure from rising prices

An increasing number of Malagasy households are unable to feed themselves as the cost of rice continues to soar, aid workers said on Monday. The price of the staple food reached a record 4,200 Malagasy francs (US 40 cents) per kilogram in August, a 20 percent increase from July. The World Food Programme (WFP) noted that families were increasingly unable to afford a basic monthly food basket, with most households having to survive on a minimum wage of 256,000 Malagasy francs (US $25) per month. WFP information officer Stefania Trassari told IRIN that urban and rural households were turning to non-traditional foods to supplement their diets. "Whereas families used to eat rice three times a day, they now look to manioc (cassava), maize or sweet potato to carry them through the month," Trassari said. The rapid rise in the price of rice has been attributed mainly to the sharp depreciation of the local currency in the first half of the year. "The devaluation of the franc in recent months, as well as a significant increase in world rice prices, has been especially detrimental for a poor country like Madagascar. There are also other difficulties, as other imported commodities have become expensive. An increase in petrol prices has meant that transport is now more expensive - [the price of] cooking oil has also increased," noted Martin Smith, the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) country representative. Smith pointed out that despite the recent cyclones, rice production had improved "marginally" this year but output remained insufficient to cover food needs. Official estimates put the rice harvest at three million mt, up from 2.8 million mt last season. Last week Malagasy authorities said the government intended to buy 25,000 mt of rice from Pakistan at a subsidised rate. WFP also noted that 4,000 mt of food (rice, cereals, etc) was needed to feed 100,000 people in 13 districts in the drought-stricken southern part of the island. "The situation in the south has not improved: malnutrition levels in that region are still very worrying," Trassari said.