August 9, 2007 (LPAC)--Inflation, especially of food prices, has to be seen as a national security issue, Russian Federation Council Speaker Sergey Mironov stated yesterday, Kommersant reported. Mironov, speaker of Russia's Upper House, called for government regulation of staple food prices. "I am convinced that the state ought to regulate prices on such basic foods as bread and milk. We need to buy from farmers not only grain at fixed prices but milk and meat as well," Mironov said. He called for special agricultural exchanges to let the state buy agricultural products.

This issue is all the more acute if we view a galloping growth in food imports as a threat to national security," he stated. "Authorities ought to take a more active part in staple foods pricing, not only record growing prices on the basic food basket. We need to entirely reconsider the state's relation to agriculture as part of a strategy to ensure the natural food security."

In Russia, bread prices have risen 7% in the past seven months, and a "basket" of basic food basic costs 17% more nationwide this year. Food prices have risen higher in Moscow and are especially high in the Far East regions. There is more pressure on living standards due to rising utilities costs, which are up 13% this year. Mironov said that "No pay or pension rises can make Russians feel better if essential goods such as break, flour, milk and vegetables will keep moving up."

Food price inflation is also a big concern in China. After Prime Minister Wen Jiabao visited public markets in Beijing Aug. 4 to demonstrate to the public that the government is taking the problem very seriously, it was no surprise yesterday that the Peoples Bank of China warned about inflation in its second quarter report. The PBOC called the risk of continuing inflation "worthy of attention" for the nation, and said that the real concern is that food price inflation – up over 11% in June -- could spread to other consumer goods.