Think before you eat

Does it ever bother you that in this day and age -- despite all of our science, technology and social compassion -- people still starve to death? While we enjoy our thick juicy steaks, others are trying to eke out their daily nutrients from dirt. And things are likely to get worse.

I just finished reading "The End of Plenty," a special report in June's National Geographic on the global food crisis. The article is well-reported, excellently written and extremely thought-provoking.

Some key points: For the past decade, the world has been consuming more food than farmers have been producing. The population is expected to grow to 8 billion by 2025. Add to that the affects of climate change, pressures of ethanol production, growth in meat consumption and scarcity of fertile land. It's a scary picture author Joel K. Bourne Jr. presents.

It becomes even scarier when you consider the environmental and health problems that occurred since crop yields were greatly increased with the development of hybrids and the help of irrigation, pesticides and fertilizers from the mid-1950s through 1980s, the so-called "green revolution." And you consider that major corporations are working on launching a second "green revolution."

Aside from becoming an agroecologist, what can one do? Eat more meatless meals, for one. Buy local, organic foods. Drive less. Support sustainable agriculture. Read up on efforts such as the Soils, Food and Healthy Communities initiative. How's that for a start?