True, Chad uses little energy, but the country is largely reliant on low-tech subsistence farming.

FORBES: The Most Energy-Efficient Countries

Sounding as if he were shocked, shocked, that there were insider dealings going on, Roski filed a lawsuit in 1991 accusing the City Council of buying land and then renting it to the mayor at a low-ball fee for his farming and cattle business.

FORBES: City of Greed

It claims in Benin alone 60, 000 farmers have given up farming because they cannot compete against artificially low prices.

BBC: Here in Texas they call it white gold.

Their reluctance has been put down to ignorance (farmers do not appreciate the benefits of fertiliser until they have tried it), timidity (they are wary of upfront commitments of money and prefer farming that delivers a reliable, even if low, return) or illiquidity (farmers cannot get the credit they need to afford seeds and fertiliser).

ECONOMIST: Economics focus

He said they had done so at a time when farming incomes were falling and farmers were "consistently been forced to take low incomes in the beef sector as supermarkets and processors relentlessly press for low prices".

BBC: Ulster Farmers' Union: Anger over horsemeat scandal

Commercial farming in Mato Grosso has had to overcome formidable obstacles: high transport costs, recently low world prices, a currency till now overvalued, and a chronic lack of farm credit.

ECONOMIST: Brazil