The American beef industry is in trouble. Though the financial strain of rising fuel and food prices is being widely felt across the U.S. economy, the livestock industry, which consumes about 5 billion bushels of corn annually, is suffering more than most.

Feedlot operators, who fatten their animals on corn before sending them to a slaughterhouse, are losing $150 a head with corn prices near record levels because of demand for corn-based ethanol. In Texas, the country's largest beef-producing state, a quarter of the once-packed feedlot space is unoccupied. Some operations are shutting their doors, and "liquidation"—the culling of herds—has become a frequent escape hatch for the seriously struggling.

Hog and chicken producers as well as cattle ranchers, all of whom depend on grain for feed, are being severely squeezed.

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Then the economics went awry. Feed is now more than half the total cost of raising catfish, compared with a third of the cost of beef and pork production, according to a Mississippi State analysis. That makes catfish more vulnerable. But if the commodities continue to rocket up — and some analysts believe they will — other industries will fall victim as well.

World food output must rise to feed a growing, wealthier population. The World Bank estimates that cereal production needs to increase by 50% and meat production 80% between 2000 and 2030 to meet demand. But this will need to be achieved in a changing climate and in a world where natural resources – especially water – are becoming more scarce;

For the world and for households, cutting waste would help – in the developing world up to 40% of food harvested can be lost due to problems with storage and distribution, and in the UK consumers waste £10 billion worth of food each year

In farmgate value terms, half of the food eaten in the UK is home-grown, nearly 70% of the rest comes from elsewhere in the EU. Everything else, from tea to pineapples to prawns is sourced from across the world;

The food chain creates 18% of UK greenhouse gas emissions. Farming and fishing contribute around half of this total. Changes to farming practices, such as more efficient use of fertiliser and providing animals with diets that specifically match their nutrient requirements could reduce emissions from agriculture;

A third of the food bought for home consumption is wasted – 6.7 million tonnes. Most of this could have been eaten. Wasting food costs the average UK family £420 a year. Eliminating the unnecessary greenhouse gas emissions that this wasted food produces would be equivalent to taking one in five cars off UK roads. By using 60% of food thrown away by households, enough energy could be generated to provide power for all the homes in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

If UK diets met nutritional guidelines, 70,000 premature deaths could be prevented each year. On average, adults and children eat more salt, fat and added sugar than is good for their health, and too few fruit and vegetables despite high awareness of the ‘5 a day’ target. A new push on the 5 A DAY campaign is needed.