Global value of imported foods to reach record level in 2007.

The global value of imported food this year is expected to reach $745 billion, 21 percent more than the level of 2006 and the highest level on record, according to estimates released by the UN Food & Agriculture Organization. For developing countries, the picture is even worse, says FAO, with these nations facing an increase of over 25 percent.

In a recent report to the WTO, FAO said the worrisome development is caused by soaring agricultural commodity prices (food cost 37% more in September than a year earlier) and transportation costs, as well as bad weather, wars and civil strife in some producing countries.

"The present situation is particularly unusual because the high prices are seen almost across-the-board in nearly all major food and feed commodities, except sugar," FAO told the WTO.

Even more troubling is that at the same time food prices are climbing, food aid is declining. "There is now a widespread and commonly shared concern about food price inflation," the FAO said, "and food riots have been witnessed in several countries."

Separately, the UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) pointed out that food importing countries do not necessarily lack food security. In fact, said UNCTAD, many net-food-importing developing countries are food-secure, whereas many countries specializing in agricultural production (those with a higher share of national income coming from farming)--are food-insecure, many of them least-developed countries.

The challenge is for net-food-importing developing countries to break out of the cycle in which they spend a large share of foreign exchange revenues on food, which is short term consumption.