The worst of the bird flu threat is over but the fight to eliminate the disease from poultry is weak

The draft of the second Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper has not adequately addressed two critical issues of food security

Carola Hoyos & Javier Blas Western countries have upgraded the food and fuel crisis into a national security concern as they fear record high energy and agriculture commodity costs are destabilising key developing regions of the world. The concerns come as the world suffers for the first time since 1973 from the confluence of record oil and food prices. Corn, soyabean and meat prices jumped this week to all-time highs, while oil prices hit a record of almost $140 a barrel.

Speakers at a view exchange meeting yesterday said that within 2088 there would be no cultivable land in Bangladesh if the present rate of conversion of farmlands into non-cultivable ones remains so. They urged the policymakers to adopt a master plan for using the land of the country for cultivation to achieve food security. The view exchange meeting on 'Recovering farm land, stopping non-farming use of farmlands and national food security' was organised by Forward Party at the Jatiya Press Club in the city.

Rs.112.50 crore for programme as special sanction This is in addition to Rs.1,119 crore for farm activities

The National Fruit-bearing Tree Plantation Fortnight-2008 begins today across the country. This year's theme for the day is "Plant more fruit-bearing saplings, have improved health, nutrition and money." President Iajuddin Ahmed and Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed have issued separate messages on the occasion. In his message, Iajuddin stressed the need for ensuring nutrition apart from achieving food security to protect people's health.

David Streitfeld and Keith Bradsher In a year when global harvests need to be excellent to ease the threat of per

Agriculture and food minister Sharad Pawar has said the restrictions imposed on export of major foodgrain are not permanent and the government could lift the ban once the supply situation improves. "I am confident that prices will go down and in such a situation we don't want to continue with these types of restrictions," Pawar said when asked about the demand being raised by world leaders on lifting export ban.