[Balding_Eagle]

It might be necessary for us (US) to raise the price of food exported in exchange for the high prices of oil imported.

That's going to be hard to do. Feedstuff prices respond to the laws of supply and demand very nicely.

That's how the National Cheap Food Policy became to be so successful. The USDA carefully crafted programs to stimulate large crops, which drove down food prices due to large supplies. However, they were careful not to generate such large crops as to drive too many farmers out of business in one crop cycle. As a result, farmers have been held captive for decades. And we've had cheap food.

With the advent of ethonal, farmers are now more free of the USDA farm programs. It is going to cost a lot of money to get the farmers to cooperate with the USDA again. That, or huge over production, always a problem for farmers.

[Justeggsactly]

I just put in my order for all my veggie seeds. My pantry, next fall, will look quite Amish. Too many people looking for gubmint handouts instead.

[Myrddin]

We might consider holding the most precious 1 square foot of land owned by the farmer under tighter reigns. That would be the land directly under the mailbox that receives a government check when crop production is short due to a drought, another check when excessive rain damages the crop and another check when the crop is so successful that price supports are necessary. That 1 square foot is mighty important.