Food Shortage Has Many Roots; ETFs Could Grow From It

2) Oil prices. Modern farming uses a lot of it, which drives up the cost of agriculture.

3) Bad weather. Australia, in particular, has been experiencing a massive drought. It’s the world’s second-largest wheat exporter, and the lack of rain has cut into their production.

Can anything be done? Krugman isn’t so sure. Expensive food and expensive oil may very well remain a fact of life.

Agriculture ETFs are a way to gain exposure to this sector if the prices do continue to rise as they have been. Among the many available:

• ELEMENTS Linked to the MLCX Grains Index (GRU), down 1.4% since Feb. 15 inception
• iPath Dow Jones AIG-Agriculture ETN (JJA), up 7.6% year-to-date
• PowerShares DB Agriculture Fund (DBA), up 16.4% year-to-date
• Market Vectors Global Agribusiness (MOO), up 0.5% year-to-date