The rising price and falling availability of rice, wheat, corn and other commodities has caused riots in some developing countries. Now comes news that some local retailers are struggling to meet the demand for rice here in the United States. Economists have cited increasing demand, declining supply, rising energy costs, speculative buying, and hoarding as possible causes for the sudden shortage. Should you worry? Larry talks with Jerry Hirsch, staff writer for the L.A. Times, Tim Johnson, President and CEO of the California Rice Commission, and Eugene Kunda, agricultural and consumer economist at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
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