WASHINGTON (Reuters) - World leaders have shown prudence in the face of rising food prices by avoiding harmful steps such as export embargoes, the United States said on Monday after France called an emergency meeting of G20 farm ministers.
Scorching drought in the United States, the world's largest farm exporter, and in the wheat-exporting Black Sea region of Europe has driven commodity prices to record levels this summer. It was the third price surge since 2007. High prices pushed tens of millions of people into hunger in 2008.
"To date, global leaders have exercised prudence in policy-making and avoided actions such as export bans that escalated the situation in 2008," said Joe Glauber, the U.S. official who will become chairman next month of a G20 clearinghouse on farm production and global food needs. "The United States is closely monitoring food markets and sharing data across the G20."
