corn

Left in the hands of Mexico’s aging campesinos, ancestral corn is at risk of becoming extinct. And that leaves not only a culinary hole, but one in the planet’s biodiversity.

The worst draught in a quarter-century is threatening the global food supply

As the cost of corn syrup rises, sugar is coming back

Back in August I wrote a piece for the magazine on the inflated value of Potash Corp., the Saskatchewan fertilizer producer that briefly became Canada’s largest company by market cap. A quick recap: Those bullish on the stock pointed to the fast growing middle classes of Asia, and their desire to eat more meat and vegetables, as a sign that demand for potash (which is used to make fertilizer) could only go up. The stock’s promoters pointed to soaring food prices as evidence this was the case.

In the money: Suncor CEO Rick George puts the rhetorical boots to Barack Obama in today’s Globe. The presidential candidate has proposed restricting imports of “dirty” oil. George says go ahead. “These guys will say a lot of things, but then when they get into office, it’ll end up they’ll do something else,” Mr. George said. “The pragmatic thing is, if they don’t buy crude from Canada, where are they going to buy it?”