"The end of Growth", Richard Heinberg's new book

The world's biggest economy will expand between 2.7pc and 2.9pc this year, weaker than it expected just two months ago. The latest evidence from manufacturing, the housing market and the consumer – still the engine of the economy – all suggest the deterioration that started in the first quarter of this year has extended into the second.
"Part of the slowdown is temporary, part of it may be longer lasting," said Fed chairman Ben Bernanke. "We don't have a precise reading on why this slower pace of growth is persisting." "Economists insist that recovery is at hand. Yet, unemployment remains high, real estate values continue to sink, and governments stagger under record deficits. The End of Growth proposes a startling diagnosis: humanity has reached a fundamental turning point in our economic history. The expansionary trajectory of industrial civilization is colliding with non-negotiable natural limits."The End of Growth describes what policymakers, communities, and families can do to build a new economy that operates within Earth’s budget of energy and resources. We can thrive during the transition if we set goals that promote human and environmental well-being, rather than continuing to pursue the now-unattainable prize of ever-expanding GDP." http://richardheinberg.com

Is the beginning of a new era of progress without growth?

What's behind the World's growing food-price crisis?

Year by year Humanity has reached Peak oil. So rising oil prices make many people think of bio-ethanol as a possible solution. But ethanol fuels are produced by fermentaion of sugars derived from wheat, corn, sugar beets, sugar cane, molasses etc. Here comes trouble. In fact, data show that developed countries already spend a very high percetage of their domestic cereals supply for livestock production, especially pigs. The European Union e the USA use between 70% and 90% domestic ceral supply for feeding animals and with 470 million of hogs, China has more pigs than the rest of the planet stacked together!!!

Yet from 2007 to 2008 the share of ethanol in global gasoline type fuel use increased from 3.7 % to 5.4 %. In 2009 worldwide ethanol fuel production reached 19.5 billion gallons (73.9 billion liters). Soon very large-scale farming will be necessary to produce agricultural alcohol with substantial amounts of cultivated land. University of Minnesota researchers report that if all corn grown in the USA were used to make ethanol it would displace 12 % of current US gasoline consumption only.

In summary, the growing demand for the energy sector and the most traditional use for feeding animals make millions of people starve. 

Prices on such food as corn and wheat have risen over 180%. Rising food prices that have already caused rebellion in several developing countries will likely push more than 100 millions of people into deep poverty.